


Shaken

by Seventyfiveapples



Category: Bright (2017)
Genre: Angst, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-15
Updated: 2018-03-17
Packaged: 2019-03-19 00:46:14
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 28,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13693353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Seventyfiveapples/pseuds/Seventyfiveapples
Summary: Officer Nick Jakoby receives an unusual invitation and finds himself pulled into the orbit of a middle school teacher who comes with some baggage. Smoothies abound.In this story, I wanted to give Nick a few warm fuzzies and I wanted to imagine: who are the people in the Bright universe who would be inspired by Nick and not just a huge jerk to him? I also wanted to think about the concept of families that are not bound by blood.





	1. Chapter 1

If Nick stared at this monitor any longer, he thought his eyes would cross. He didn’t dislike paperwork - it was an important, if tedious, part of police work - but today’s had stacked up on him. It was late afternoon and his office had mostly emptied, so this was a good time for him to focus.

“Um… excuse me? Officer?” Asked a timid voice, close enough to startle him. He stood to address his visitor. When she saw him rise to his feet, the young girl who’d spoken - a female orc, 12 or 13 years old, standing just on the other side of his desk - took a large step backwards. She was wearing a black and white plaid school uniform and carrying a small stack of books. She seemed extremely nervous. Jakoby tried to reassure her with a gentle smile.

“Um, yes? How can I help you?” He asked. She gripped her schoolbooks tightly as she prepared to speak.

“Um… You’re Officer Nick Jakoby, right?” She asked, just as timid as the first time. “That’s right, Miss. Is there some-“

“I’mfromSaintEmydiusAcademy and…we’re supposed tofindspeakersforCareerDayand… since you’rethefirstorcpolicemaninthecountry and… yougotamedal and all, Iwashopingyoucouldcomeand talktomyclassabouthowyougottowhereyouare but… if you don’t want to that’s okay!” She blurted.

It all came out at once, a nervous shout.

Jakoby blinked a few times. He furrowed his brow as he tried to parse her words, to no success. Nick’s confusion and the ensuing pause sent the poor girl into a near panic, and she glanced at someone behind her for guidance.

Standing several feet back and leaning against a wall was an attractive human woman with shoulder length wavy brown hair. She ran a hand through her hair and he noticed a few streaks of blue and green peek out from under the top layer. She wore a close-fitting black cardigan that hugged her curves over a scoop neck gray tee shirt, jeans, and a pair of well-worn red Doc Martens boots.

“Gilda, sweetie,” she said in a soft tone. “That was great, but I’m not quite sure if he could hear your question. Maybe try a little slower.”

Jakoby extended a hand, offering a seat to the young girl in a chair facing his desk. She sat and took a deep breath, seeming to relax visibly.

“Officer Jakoby, as the nation’s first Orc police officer, would you be willing to speak to my class for Career Day?” The adult woman standing behind her silently nodded and smiled, pleased for the young girl. Jakoby was surprised and touched.

This young orc looked up to him? Saw him as… a role model? This was certainly a first.

“Miss,” he began, visibly moved by her request, “I would be honored to.”

The brunette woman - A teacher, maybe? - approached the desk with a postcard. She grabbed a pen from his desk and started writing something on the back. She was gorgeous, Nick thought, and he couldn't help notice her steal a few glances his way. She pushed the postcard toward him on the desk. On the front was a pen and ink drawing of an old Spanish style church with three or four similar buildings behind it.

“This is our school,” she told him, indicating the address at the bottom. She flipped the card over. “Saint Emydius. It’s two weeks from today, 2:30 pm. Is that a good day?” Jakoby checked his calendar and confirmed. “Great! My cell phone number is at the bottom if you have any questions beforehand. Call when you arrive and I’ll meet you in the front office and walk you back. It’s kind of a maze.”

“Okay. It’s in my calendar. I’ve never spoken at a Career Day before. What should I bring: maybe a few guns?” That would be a hit, he thought.

Lucy grinned a little at his question before responding. She didn’t want him to think she was mocking him. “No weapons please - school policy. Just bring yourself! Just tell them what it’s like to be a police officer, what kind of training you need, that kind of thing. It would be nice if you were in uniform.” If Nick didn’t know better, he’d sworn she gave him a quick up-and-down glance. “I mean, the girls would probably like to see an officer in full uniform.”

He smiled a little.

“It all sounds great. I’m looking forward to it, Miss…” She extended her hand, returning his smile.

“Harris. It’s Lucy Harris, but please call me Lucy.”

The young girl placed an envelope on his desk before standing to leave. “It was really nice to meet you, Officer Jakoby. Our class wanted to give you this,” said Gilda. Color crept into her face as she spoke. Lucy had no idea orcs could blush.

“A pleasure, Gilda.” He said as he shook her hand. The young girl smiled and could no longer make eye contact with Nick. She mumbled something to Lucy and left the room with a small wave to Nick and Lucy.

“Is she… all right?” Asked Nick.

“Are you kidding? She’s on cloud nine. She could probably fly home.”

“Really?” He frowned. “She seemed to have trouble breathing.” At that girl’s age, emotions were so volatile that even Nick’s keen skills of perception left him at a loss. He couldn’t begin to guess the girl’s state of mind. Lucy looked at him with a knowing smile.

“You never had a crush when you were her age?”

“A crush? On… who?”

“Come on, Officer. Half of her class has your picture in their locker. Humans, orcs, elves, you name it. All races and genders… You seem to have a certain broad appeal.”

Nick was dumbstruck by this and had no idea how to respond.

“Don’t act so surprised. You’re a good looking guy. I’m sure... Mrs. Jakoby tells you that all the time.” Lucy was never this forward but he was so modest she enjoyed flirting with him a little. Nick looked at her with a puzzled expression.

“My _mother_? I guess… sometimes?” Lucy grinned at him as she turned to leave.

“It was nice to meet you, Officer Jakoby.”

“Ma’am,” he replied with a slight nod of his head. Nick caught himself staring after her and turned his attention back to his desk. He opened the envelope to find a “thank you” note with about 15 handwritten signatures, all in different handwriting:

“Thanks Officer Jakoby. It’s good to know you are out there helping people.”

“Thank you for protecting people and fighting evil.”

“Thanks for saving the world and stuff. That was cool.”

 “Thanks for showing me that orcs can be anything we want.” One by one, he read them each, speechless. He blinked back a few tears.

What the hell had just happened?

***

Lucy drove Gilda home, and you’d never guess she was the same girl from the police station.

“Oh my GOD, Miss Harris, did you SEE his eyes? It’s like… little pools of handsomeness. He looks even bigger and stronger in person than he did on TV. Ooh and when he shook my hand? I will never wash this hand again.”

“You’d better, it’s flu season.”

“And his voice!” Gilda sighed dramatically, ignoring her teacher. She attempted an impression: “A pleasure, Gilda.”

“Just remember, he’s coming to talk about his career, not his ‘dreamy eyes’.”

“Miss Harris. NO ONE says ‘dreamy.’ You can NOT say that! Promise me you won’t say dreamy in front of him!”

Ah, thirteen year olds.

She dropped her student off at her home and headed towards her own house. She had to admit, she felt a little giddy after meeting the officer as well.

“Hey, I’m home!” She called down the hall to her roommate. “Hey, Lucy. There’s a package for you on the table.”

“Thanks, Billie. This is truly the golden age…” she had been looking forward to her recent order of art supplies.

“Hey,” She said, trying to sound casual. “do you know that orc police officer, Jakoby?” Billie, a tall female orc wearing a bright blue button-down shirt, poked her head around the corner.

“We don’t all know each other, you know.”

“I know, but he kind of… sticks out.”

“Sorry, don’t know him. Why?”

“I just took Gilda to invite him to speak at Career Day. Holy moly, does she have a crush on him.” Billie snickered.

“This is why I stick with elementary grades. I don’t know how you handle all that puberty.” She grabbed a beer for each of you and opened them with her bare hands. Lucy was always impressed by that.

“Anyway, he was so sweet with her. Just seemed so surprised and touched that she would want him to speak. Very gentle and polite, but serious. Genuine. I don’t know, he just seemed like a really good guy.”

“Mm-hmm…” Billie had a smile that was impossible to interpret.

“What does that mean?”

“Maybe Gilda’s not the only one with a crush? Maybe you want to take a walk on the Orc side for a change? I’d always hoped you’d come to me if you wanted to try it out, but hey…”

“And be another notch on your bedpost? I don’t think so.” The number of female guests Billie had “hosted” since Lucy had moved in was truly impressive. “Besides you’re the best roommate I’ve ever had. I do not want to fuck that up.”

“Suit yourself,” said Billie, smirking. “I’m just saying, it seemed like you were kind of taken with Officer Hot Stuff or whatever his name was.”

“Jakoby and, okay, you’re not wrong,” Lucy was grinning, getting ready to dish to her roommate about their meeting, when she went to pick up her package- and her blood went cold.

“Billie- where did this package come from?!”

“It was at the door when I got home- I thought it looked kind of weird.” The box was wrapped in plain brown craft paper. On the outside there was no address, no label, no postage. Just her name in block letters: LUCY HARRIS. It must have been placed here by hand.

 _Shit_ , she thought. _Shit shit shit_. _No_. After two years, and 1200 miles, why was this happening now? **_How?_ **

With shaking hands she opened the package and found a picture frame and a letter. In the frame was a picture of Lucy, opening her own car door. By her clothes and hairstyle, Lucy recognized the picture had been taken two days ago. Was he here, following her? She felt sick. The letter had only two words:

“Found you.”


	2. Chapter 2

Saint Emydius was a unique school. One of the only private schools in the LA metropolitan area that had racial diversity as part of its mission, and the only one with a private endowment large enough to accept all students on scholarship. There were brezziks, humans, orcs, ogres, and even a few elves who had no other family. There were mixed-race students whose experience in other schools had been disastrous. Many students were runaways or orphans, some were experiencing homelessness or unstable homes (the school had dormitories) and there were also a good number of students from middle or upper-class families, whose parents wanted them to benefit from learning in a diverse environment. Small class sizes ensured that all students would receive lots of individualized attention. Students of all backgrounds blossomed at Saint Emydius.

Lucy loved teaching there. It was a happy, peaceful bubble in a hard world.

At most schools, Career Day was a casual blowoff afternoon. Kids would ask their parents to come and say a few words about their career and the students would try to stay awake.

At Saint Emydius, it was a big freaking deal. Since many students didn’t have parents, they were encouraged to invite a role model from any field. In a city like LA, there would usually be a few celebrities each year: actors, musicians, athletes from all races. When Gilda approached Lucy about inviting Officer Jakoby, Lucy had thought it was a lovely idea.

“Miss Harris? Is this going to be on the test?” Asked a male ogre student, after she finished telling a story about seeing a Bright accidentally blow a hole through the roof of a City bus- while she was riding it. Giggles rippled through the rest of the class.

“No, Jonah, that won’t be on the test. Remember everyone - next week’s test covers History of Magic, 1200-1500 CE.” Just then, the overhead bell rang, dismissing students for lunch. “I’ll see you all back here for Physics after lunch.” A knot formed in her stomach as she found herself alone in the classroom.

Luckily, Billie was as good as her word, arriving within minutes at her door to go get lunch together. Lucy could relax, she told herself, after they moved this weekend.

***

Late that afternoon, Nick and Ward were in their patrol car on duty. As usual, Nick was driving. Nick had been uncharacteristically quiet all day, lost in thought over his interaction with Lucy Harris and her student the previous day. Receiving an award from the city was one of the proudest days of his life, but the note from Lucy’s students moved him deeply.

“Hey Nick - not that I’m not enjoying a little peace and quiet here, but you haven’t been this quiet since you died in that orc church. Everything ok over there?”

“Just lost in thought, partner. I told you about that teacher that came by yesterday?”

“The one who gave you her number but you haven’t called yet?”

“The school she teaches at - Saint Emydius,” said Nick, ignoring Daryl. “have you heard of it?”

“I’ve heard the name, why?”

“Well, it’s a school that’s open to anyone. All races. Not just open: Diversity and tolerance are part of its mission. It’s just- I think that’s a great thing. They’re going to have all these doors open for them, and then they’re going to open them wider for the next generation. Those kids are going to grow up outside of all this… bullshit.”

“You know you can’t say ‘bullshit’ when you talk to those kids, right?”

“I just think it’s nice,” Nick concluded, unsmiling, as he returned his attention to the road.

Daryl recognized, not for the first time, that his partner must have been put through the wringer in his youth. Nick didn’t really talk about it, but Daryl could guess some from how he was treated now, by co-workers and even the public.

A lesser man would have buckled or become resentful from years of that abuse. Nick’s ability to not only achieve his goals but maintain idealism showed real strength of character. Daryl admired him for it.

Of course, he would never admit that.

“So tell me about this teacher,” he prodded, gently shaking Nick from his thoughts. “She really called you good looking? Sounds like it may be time for her to get an eye exam.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” Nick could tell Ward was teasing him, but it was good-natured and he welcomed the change of subjects, so he played along.

“But hey - I don’t know what orcs look for in other orcs. Pointy ears? Symmetrical markings? Maybe you’re like the orc version of Jude Law.”

Nick didn’t correct his partner’s assumption that the teacher was another orc. That would be an entirely different conversation.

He turned his head to his partner and wiggled his eyebrows once.

“He wishes.”

***

“So we just wait to get slaughtered in our sleep or what?” Asked Billie over dinner the next day, trying to goad Lucy into taking some action.

“I’m sorry about this, Billie. But we’re moving this weekend, next door to your brothers. I doubt he’ll bother us there. We can hang on until then.” Billie’s two brothers were huge, intimidating orcs who were also members of the Fogteeth gang. Lucy couldn’t imagine they’d have trouble living next door to them. Then again, they might find trouble if a different kind. She didn’t ask many questions about the kinds of activities her brothers were involved in - their gang involvement was a sensitive subject for Billie - but she knew the Fogteeth gang trafficked in drugs and probably other contraband.

”I know they’re big guys, and you may be right, but I’m not trying to put them in danger, either,” Billie told her. “Even orcs aren’t bulletproof.”

“No, you’re right,” she admitted, “This… has been going on way too long anyway.” She breathed deeply. "I’ll report it.”

Lucy had tried to put off going to the authorities for as long as possible. She was not eager to make herself more visible than she already was. Then again, she couldn’t ask Billie or her family to take a risk for her.

She hadn’t seen anything odd since the package, although since then she felt like a live current, jumping at every slight unexpected noise. Billie tried to act like it didn’t bother her, but Lucy noticed that she didn’t seem to be sleeping. She was sure Billie would get away from her as soon as she could.

When Billie had suggested they move in next door to her brothers, Lucy was so grateful that she still wanted to be roommates. Billie was her closest friend and the only person who knew why she’d really come to LA.

Lucy thought about what she’d say to the police as she stood to clear the table. Suddenly hot tears sprang to her eyes. She felt hopeless and trapped.

Billie watched Lucy’s emotions play out on her face and walked over to where she stood, giving her a tight, lingering hug.

“Good,” Billie said, her own eyes a little misty. “You’re kind of my best friend. Besides,” she said with a wink, “This may be the perfect opportunity to give Officer Hot Stuff a call.”

Lucy managed a laugh, tossing a newspaper at Billie as she ducked back down the hallway. Coming across as a helpless victim in need of his help wasn’t the impression she had hoped to make on the Officer, but what the hell, she thought. Desperate times and all.

She picked up her phone to dial. At that same moment, she saw an incoming call… from an unknown number. She froze and dropped it on the table. Her heart pounded like a jackhammer but she could not will her limbs to move. Finally, the ringing stopped and her phone made a quick buzz - there was a new voicemail. It shook her out of her fugue state. With shaking hands she slowly picked up the phone and played the message on speaker. As soon as she recognized the voice, she relaxed.

“Um, hi. Hello. This message is for Miss Lucy Harris. The greeting just said ‘Lucy’ so I hope this is the right person. This is Nick- um, Officer Jakoby, from the uh, police station.” He sounded so formal, she thought. “When you and your student came to see me, you mentioned that I could call you if I had any questions. I do have some and I was hoping we could - stop it!” He whispered to someone else.

“I was hoping we could maybe get some smoothies-“ A pause, and then in another whispered aside “what’s wrong with smoothies? - Sorry about that, I was hoping we could get some coffee or something and talk a little. I look forward to hearing from you…. um, I hope that you are having a good day.”

Billie had come back in the room when the message started playing. She was now staring at Lucy with her hand over her mouth, trying unsuccessfully to stifle a laugh.

“Holy crap, Lucy, he is really into you! He was so nervous…”

Lucy, meanwhile, was blushing bright pink. She’d only met him once, for less than ten minutes - how was it possible for his voice to have this effect? Scrolling through to her recent calls and pressing “redial”, she decided not to overthink it. The phone started ringing. Once, twice, then...

“Hello?” answered an eager, husky voice.


	3. Chapter 3

“Just call her,” Daryl advised Nick, as they worked on their second beer each. He kept catching Nick steal glances at the postcard Lucy had left. They’d had a great day at work and Daryl was in an unusually cheerful mood, so he had invited Nick to join him for happy hour at the noisy bar near the station.

“What would I say?” Nick grumbled. “I barely know her. We met for like 5, 10 minutes total.” Nick hadn’t really felt like beers, but he was pleasantly surprised by Ward’s invitation. When he was out with Ward, it felt like all those ugly looks and whispers - at least, most of them - disappeared. He felt like just another person for an hour or two, and it was a great feeling.

“That’s why you should… say it with me… _Call her_. To get to know her. That’s the whole point.”

Truthfully Nick had been thinking of Lucy since she stopped by with her student two days ago. It was a quick meeting but something about her… stayed with him. Each time he looked at the postcard, he tried to come up with reasons to call.

“Why do you care about this?” Asked Nick.

“I don’t know, man. Maybe because if I see you stare at that postcard one more time I’m going to rip it up, and you’ll miss your chance, and then I’ll feel bad,” Daryl said, then broke into a laugh. “You know, we had a good day today, arrested a lot of people, and Maybe I’m just in a good mood.”

“I don’t know, partner. What if she… doesn’t want to get to know me?”

“Then at least you’ll know, and then you can get on with your life. I’ll tell you what. One round of darts. If I win, you go in that phone booth for a little privacy,” he indicated an antique wooden booth in the corner, “and call her right now. If you win I’ll shut the fuck up and buy us another round.”

Nick agreed, unsure which he hoped for more.

Ward won the game easily. Nick was equally eager and terrified to make the call, but the alcohol and Ward’s goading had combined to give him a boost of confidence. He walked into the booth, shut the folding door to drown out the raucous bar, took out the postcard, and dialed.

 _No answer_ , he mouthed to Ward, who shouted back “LEAVE A MESSAGE.”

The voicemail beeped before he considered what to say.

“Um, hi. Hello. This message is for Miss Lucy Harris. The greeting just said ‘Lucy’ so I hope this is the right person. This is Nick- um, Officer Jakoby, from the uh, police station.”

“When you and your student came to see me, you mentioned that I could call you if I had any questions. I do have some and I was hoping we could - stop it!” He’d made the mistake of glancing a Daryl, who was making some distracting gestures on the other side of the phone booth.

“I was hoping we could maybe get some smoothies-“ Daryl now knocked on the booth and just shook his head slowly. A smoothie date? Nick was hopeless. Nick leaned his head out and whispered gruffly, “what’s wrong with smoothies?” then remembered he was in the middle of leaving a message and tried to casually regain his train of thought.  
“Sorry about that, I was hoping we could get some coffee or something,” Ward gave him a thumbs up sign, “and talk a little. I look forward to hearing from you…. um, have a good day.”

Nick left the booth, beaming and pleased with himself. Ward began to do a slow golf clap. He and Ward rejoined their beers at their table and Nick started to wonder when - if - she might call back.

He didn’t have long to wonder. A moment later, his phone rang: it was Lucy. He ran back to the booth to answer it in relative privacy.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Officer Jakoby? This is Lucy - I just missed your call.” When he heard her voice, he could have sworn the earth moved underneath him.

“Hi! Oh and please, call me Nick.”

“Okay Nick- it’s great to hear from you! Coffee - or smoothies - sounds great! I’ll be free all day on Sunday?” She actually seemed happy to hear from him.

“Sunday sounds perfect- can we say 1:00pm?”

“Sure! Text me the address and I’ll meet you there. Oh and Nick? I’m glad you called… I hope I can answer your questions.”

“Questions? Oh right. My questions about Career Day.” He reminded himself to come up with some.

***

Moving into their new place on Saturday had gone remarkably smoothly. Billie’s brothers Sid and Ty had insisted on carrying all of the heavier items, and seemed to be competing with each other on how much they could carry in one load. Everything was done by noon and Billie and Lucy sprang for pizza and beers for everyone. Over this casual meal, Lucy had begun to relax for the first time all week.

Billie’s brothers acted tough but were really quite funny and friendly to Lucy, and remarkably devoted to their sister.

Relaxing inside after lunch, Lucy suddenly heard Sid, standing outside, bellow: “ **HEY!** Get the fuck outta here asshole!”

She and Billie ran to the front porch to see what had happened. Sid was yelling after someone who was already half a block away.

“Shit, Lucy- your car.”

Lucy ran to her car. On one side, two tires were flat. Sticking out of one was a small knife holding in place a torn scrap of paper. She pulled out the knife and read the note:

_You can run but you can’t hide. Those pig-nose motherfuckers can’t protect you._

Lucy’s face flushed hot in anger. She stuffed the note and the knife in her pocket.

“Lucy, oh my god!” Yelled Billie, running to her. “What happened?”

“I don’t know. Some asshole just slashed two of my tires.”

“Probably just a kid trying to impress his friends. We get that in this neighborhood- I’m sorry! You haven’t even been here a day. I bet Sid could find you some new ones if you’re not too picky about where they came from.”

“I can’t ask you to do that.” Lucy wasn't really keen to accept an offer of (were they stolen?) tires, but didn't want to offend.

“You didn’t,” said Sid, who had popped up right behind them. “You’ve kept an eye on our little sister, we’ll keep an eye out for you. I’ll get you tires. May take a couple days, though.”

“Shit, thank you,” Lucy said, trying to ignore the implied possibility that the tires might not be… legally sourced. She felt worse about hiding the note, but also more determined that they not see the ugly slurs.

She would talk to Nick about this tomorrow, she promised herself.

***

Just after noon on Sunday, Nick headed to pick up Lucy in his personal car, a Prius. She had texted about some car trouble and asked for a ride, which he was happy to offer. He was a bit surprised when she gave him an address in a predominantly Orc neighborhood. He was even more surprised when he knocked on the door and a tall, female orc in a white button-down shirt and a gray suit vest answered. Lucy was standing next to her.

“You must be Officer… um...” For some reason, Lucy lightly jabbed her with her elbow.

“Jakoby, Nick Jakoby.” Most orcs were not keen to talk to him for long, so he tried to get to the point as quickly as he could. “Hi, Lucy,” he said in a low voice that made her blush.

She was wearing a long sleeved red knit top layer over a low cut black tee shirt, figure hugging black pants and the same red Doc Martens she’d worn the last time the saw each other. Nick was in a light blue buttoned shirt underneath a casual gray blazer and gray jeans. The two of them stood for several seconds, taking each other in, before either spoke.

“You look lovely, Lucy,” Nick said at last. He seemed so sincere it made her blush.

“You look… very nice as well, Nick. Are you ready?”

“Yep, ready.”

”Oh wait - I didn't introduce you to Billie.”

“Not quite,” said Billie. She held out her hand to Nick. “I’m Billie, Nick. Lucy’s roommate. Good to meet you. I’m glad there’s one of us out there, on the force.” He was surprised by her warm greeting.

“Nice to meet you, Billie,” he replied.

Nick and Lucy left for their date, with Lucy exchanging a “look” with her roommate on the way out the door.

Nick stopped and faced Lucy before opening her door. He looked a little hesitant. He breathed in deeply and then spoke “I have a confession. I don’t really have questions about Career Day. I just… enjoyed meeting you and wanted to get to know you a bit more. I just wanted to be honest with you before we left.”

Lucy felt a rush wash over her at this sweet and clumsy admission. “To be honest with you, I thought that might be the case. At least,” she said, stepping a little closer to him, “I hoped it was.”

Nick reached out a hand, tenderly brushing his fingers against hers and - when he saw that she didn’t seem to pull back or get uncomfortable, maintaining eye contact - he took her hand and gently held it in his. She looked up and met his gaze. It was such a tender gesture, she couldn’t stop herself from smiling and blushing, feeling like a teenager.

What was happening here, she thought?

He opened the car door for her, then got in and prepared to drive. Lucy realized that she didn’t know where they were going, and she really didn’t care.


	4. Chapter 4

Nick and Lucy sat down at a small outside table with matching green smoothies. He reminded himself to tell Ward later that she had picked he smoothie place over coffee. He’d gushed about his favorite: kale matcha peach, and Lucy decided to have the same. On the way there, she asked him who he’d been talking to on his voicemail message and he told her about Ward.

They talked about the upcoming Career Day event and about musical tastes. She’d surprised him by knowing two of his favorite Orcish bands, and she was grateful she’d paid attention to Billie’s vinyl collection.

Lucy had been hungry before they arrived, but now, sitting close enough to Nick that their knees touched a few times and really noticing how handsome he was - his broad shoulders, intricate skin markings, the way his amber eyes seemed to pierce right through her when she spoke - she could barely think about her smoothie. She felt exhilarated.

“So how did you come to have an orc for a roommate?” Nick asked. It was pretty unusual. Lucy shrugged.

“I just answered her ad and we got along. She was the first person I met when I came to LA a couple of years ago, and we were both teachers so we already had some things in common. I actually helped her get hired on at Saint Emydius after she lost her job at her other human school. Now we commute most days.”

“She was fired?” Nick asked, curious about other orcs who worked in human-run institutions.

“Yep- clear discrimination case. But not because she was an orc: One of the parents saw her at a lesbian bar and complained to the principal, who’s kind of a religious nut. I guess a lesbian orc was a bridge too far for some. She fought it on civil rights grounds, actually won the case, but after that, she didn’t really care to work there anymore. Humans, huh?” She said, looking at him with a smirk. “We’re just determined to be bigots about something.”

“I don’t know if I’d go that far…” he said without making eye contact.

“It’s okay, Nick. I see it every day in the eyes of my students. You remember Gilda, who came with me to your office? The first day I met her, two years ago, she asked me why orcs could never be beautiful, because she’d never heard anyone describe an orc that way. She also asked why orcs could only be construction workers or football players. Her parents died when she was five and because her family was unblooded, she had no one in the Orc community to take her in. She’d been living with humans who never told her she could be anything she wanted. Never told her anything about her background. She lives at the school dormitories now.

“I started bringing in any news stories I saw with orcs in different professions, and eventually, she saw a story about you. She started asking questions about law enforcement and now she tells me she wants to become a lawyer. Anyway, that’s part of the reason she got sort of fixated on you. You showed her she could be anything she wants to be, and she never felt that before.” She paused and took a sip of her smoothie. It WAS good. Nick looked away, shyly, unsure of what to say. He wasn’t used to receiving compliments like this.

Lucy wanted to be sure he knew her words were sincere. She reached across the table to hold one of his hands. She felt a jolt as her skin touched his, and she wondered if she was blushing. He looked up at her with questioning eyes. She leaned in towards him.

“I hope you know that just being who you are, you make a difference. Even if you don’t see it in the world, I do. I see it in my students.” He interlaced his fingers with hers and she could swear he was blinking back tears. _**“You make their world a better place.”**_

“Lucy- thank you. That’s quite a compliment. I… thank you.”

“Truly Nick, thank YOU.” She took another sip of her smoothie. “But tell me something about you: How did you come to be a police officer? It’s pretty remarkable to be the first one to do something - anything.”

“Well,” he started, taking a deep breath. “The short version is: it’s the only thing I ever wanted to do.”

“And the long version? I’ve got plenty of smoothie left…” He chuckled softly before continuing.

“Okay. Well, since my father was unblooded, I grew up mostly around humans. Really, though, we were isolated from both groups. I tried to make friends at my human school, but… People were scared. It wasn’t their fault, they just didn’t know any other orcs.” He paused before he went on. “One day I hurt someone, on accident. A friend of mine. He joked about it, trying to show there were no hard feelings. Man I felt like shit, though.

“It got tougher after that. Most people completely avoided me, but a few of the bigger guys - they would always try to lure me into fights. I told myself I’d never raise a hand to a human again, so it usually ended up with a group of kids taking turns… basically beating the shit out of me.

“Jesus, I’ve never really talked about this with anyone.

“Sometimes, the cops would break up the fights. A teacher must have tipped them off… When they came, I saw how respected the police were by humans in my community, and I knew that was because their job was to help people. Helping people- that was what I wanted to do, too. I thought, if I could do that, then I could use my strength for good, and people wouldn’t be afraid of me. Then maybe humans would be able to see me - see ALL orcs - as more than just monsters. The more I thought about it, the more sense it made. Every day since, I’ve moved towards that goal.”

Lucy was moved by his story and heartbroken for the child he once was. She could tell he didn’t want pity or comfort. Slowly, she removed one hand from Nick’s and raised her smoothie towards him.

“Here’s to achieving your goals.” He laughed softly and nodded, touching his cup to hers.

“You’re an incredible person, do you know that, Nick?”

He shook his head modestly, again uncomfortable with any praise. He didn’t add that his career had left him still feeling isolated from both races.

After that, it was as though a dam had burst between them. They spent the rest of their date mostly making each other laugh. Lucy tried not to stare at her handsome date, but she found Nick’s smile hypnotic. Nick decided he wanted to hear Lucy laugh as often as possible.

  
***

They spent almost three hours together at the smoothie cafe. When Nick dropped her off at her house, he walked around to her side of the car to let her out, but Lucy was already standing outside the car waiting for him when he got there.

“Thank you for a wonderful time, Nick,” she said, taking a couple of steps to close the distance between them.

“I had a great time, too,” he told her, his voice a low purr.

Gently, Lucy lifted her hand to his face, lightly caressing his cheek. When she made contact with his skin, she noticed the lightest flutter of his ear, and she smiled as she reached her fingertips to the delicately pointed ear. His breath hitched as she did so, and she made a mental note to remember this sensitive spot.

“Lucy-“ he whispered, and she couldn’t resist. Her hand brushed his cheek again as she leaned up to graze his lips with a soft, slight, feather touch of a kiss. His lips felt like decadent suede. Lucy wanted more but wasn’t sure if he did. She pulled back slightly to look in his eyes and gauge his reaction.

Nick circled one hand around her waist and brought the other one to the back of her head, holding her firmly as desire gripped him and he pulled her close for another, deeper kiss. Surprised by his sudden assertiveness, she wrapped her arms around his broad frame, encouraging him to continue. She felt her whole body tingling with desire as she pressed against him, deepening the kiss. She heard a sudden intake of air as he breathed in and she wondered what she must smell like to him.

Both pulled back for a moment, breathless. Lucy was about to speak when all of a sudden...

**_HONK HONK!_ **

“Hey Lucy, check out your new wheels!” Lucy looked up as Billie and her brothers barreled down the road in her car… with four brand new tires.

Damn it, Lucy thought, she’d forgotten to talk to Nick about the package and slashed tires. Tomorrow, she told herself, before becoming completely distracted by the gorgeous set of brand new tires on her car.

“Oh my god!” She said, untangling herself from Nick’s embrace as they pulled into the driveway, “These are awesome- thank you guys so much.”

Almost imperceptibly, Nick had tensed when the trio arrived and parked in the driveway next door to Lucy’s house.

“Well,” said Ty, who looked quite familiar to the officer, “if it ain’t Officer Jakoby. Here on official business, Officer?”

“Not exactly,” he answered tersely.

“If you’re worried about the tires, Officer, don’t be. They ain’t stolen: they were a trade.” said Ty, answering a question no one had asked, and sounding way more suspicious than if he’d been silent. Lucy gave Billie a loaded look.

“Sorry, hon” called Billie. “My brothers and I are just heading inside… NOW.” She said as it seemed that her brothers might have more to say to Nick. They followed their sister’s suggestion and greeted Lucy with a small wave before going inside and shutting the door behind them.

“Those are Fogteeth gang members. They’re Billie’s brothers?” He asked, somewhat alarmed.

“Don’t worry. She doesn’t have anything to do with that stuff. Hey, can I come see you at work tomorrow? I actually have something kind of… sensitive I need to talk to a police officer about, and it probably shouldn’t wait.”

Billie’s involvement wasn’t exactly what he was worried about, but when he looked down at Lucy, he saw a flash of real fear in her eyes that shook him out of his train of thought.

“Of course, I’ll be at the station all morning.”

“Thank you, and thanks again for such a great time.”

“Would you like to see me again sometime?” he asked. Surely he could guess the answer, but something about his formality felt utterly charming.

“Hell yes.”

Nick smiled and pulled her to him again for another long, deep kiss. She felt like she could melt away into his arms. The world around her seemed to shift as she stood still, trying to memorize the feeling of his strong body against hers. All of a sudden, Nick stopped, frozen. He sniffed the air - what was that?

Then…

“Do you feel that?” He asked, alarmed. Before she could respond, a deep rumbling bubbled up from the earth below. Everything shook.

She grabbed onto Nick tightly, out of surprise and fear.

They stood like that for several minutes, until she was sure the earthquake had passed.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh hello: it’s you, plot and angst. Yes that’s right, but there is important background stuff to lay down. I promise there will be sexy times soon. (SO SOON.) So, I was thinking that if Nick was the nation’s first orc police officer and it’s present day LA, and “races living separately” is a thing, then it might be a pretty Big Deal for an orc and human to date. So that had an affect on some of the conversations in this chapter, and maybe Ward has a little “journey” as he evolves on this topic. Is this too much exposition? Is this too plot heavy? Would it stop me if it was? haha enjoy.

The sun was bright and warm the next day, and Nick took a moment to tilt his head upwards and take a deep breath before climbing the stairs to the station. Was it always this bright? Did the lantana on the sidewalk always smell so sweet? Everything seemed a little… more today. He smiled to himself, thinking about his date with Lucy - their conversation, the way she looked at him… even the end of the date, when their goodbye kiss was so rudely interrupted by the San Andreas fault.

It was a small earthquake: 3.5 or 3.6 tops, but he could tell Lucy was thoroughly freaked out. He realized that she must be relatively new to the area.

When she gripped him tightly for stability, he thought his heart might pound right out of his chest: Not only did she seem to like his company, she trusted him. She believed he could keep her _safe_. He wanted to keep earning that trust, to make her feel safe as much as he could. Every now and then he could tell that there was something… some fear at the back of her mind… that kept her always a little on edge.

When she’d asked to come see him at the station today, her whole demeanor had changed. He saw her fear most clearly then.

_Oh shit_ , he thought suddenly, seeing Daryl at his desk across the room. _She’s coming to the station today_. Nick still hadn’t told him that Lucy was human. Maybe it wouldn’t be a big deal… Maybe he should tell him just in case.

His partner waved at him from across the room.

“Hey Casanova, how was the big date?”

Nick's thoughts dissolved as couldn’t help himself from grinning ear to ear. “It was… really good! Really REALLY good.” He smiled to himself for a moment and then just shook his head. “She’s incredible… funny, smart, kind, driven… AND,” he concluded, “she picked the smoothie café.”

“Well, aren’t you two just two little orc peas in a pod? You know what, I’m happy for you, Nick.”

“Hey Daryl, can I talk to you about something?”

“Sure thing right after you go turn this paperwork in.” Daryl handed him a small stack of folders. Nick frowned.

Daryl hated to turn in paperwork. The new Captain could chat up a brick wall, and might not even notice. He would take up no less than fifteen minutes of Daryl’s time every time he saw him, regaling him with tales of the glory days of his youth while Daryl tried his best to politely excuse himself.

If Daryl Ward could barely get a word in edgewise, Nick didn’t know how anyone else managed.

Luckily for Nick, the captain’s anti-orc bigotry expressed itself in something close to the silent treatment. He barely said two words when he saw Officer Jakoby. For once, Nick didn’t entirely mind being treated differently. He headed down to drop off the papers.

***

One thing Lucy would never get used to in Southern California was the earthquakes. There was something so unsettling about the ground under her feet moving… what kind of place had she moved to, where she couldn’t trust the ground? Luckily, yesterday’s was a smaller one.

Nick had taken it completely in stride. He hadn’t even flinched when the tremor rolled through - or when she grabbed onto him for dear life. _Real smooth, Lucy. There’s that confident image you try to project._ She thought of how he looked at her when she’d held him. She didn’t think he’d minded one bit, actually.

In the police station, she walked straight to Officer Jakoby’s desk. It was empty for the moment.

“Can I help you, ma’am?” Asked a tall, black, human officer from behind her.

“Oh! Thank you, I’m just waiting for Officer Jakoby.”

“He’ll be right back if you want to have a seat. If there’s anything I can help with, he’s my partner.”

“You’re Daryl Ward? It’s nice to meet you! I’m Lucy Harris and-“

“You’re Lucy Harris.” It was more of a statement than a question.

“That’s right, Officer Ward, and I was-"

“Lucy Harris. Teacher, smoothie fan. You’re... a human?” He had an odd look on his face as he asked her this question. What was going on here? Lucy said nothing, watching Daryl as he looked at her with an expression she could not interpret. Finally, she spoke.

“Um, yeah. Last time I checked… Is Nic- Officer Jakoby coming back soon?”

“Yeah, why don’t you just take a seat over there.” He said, suddenly chilly. Lucy pretended to be fascinated with the contents of her purse while she waited. After a few minutes, Nick came back.

He smiled when he saw Lucy but paused as he approached, seeming to sense something off in the room.

“Hey, Nick. Thanks for meeting with me. Is there somewhere we can go to talk privately? This is kind of… sensitive.”

“Sure. We have a few empty offices down the hall.” He turned to Ward and saw a look that was a mix of… Disappointment? Disgust? Something in between?

“Partner, we can talk in a minute, but right now I could use your help.”

***

The three of them sat in an empty office while Lucy removed three items from the purple canvas tote bag she had brought with her.

“I came home a week ago and my roommate had found this propped against our front door,” she started. The officers looked closely at the items - torn brown wrapping paper with Lucy’s full name printed in block letter, the framed photo, and the note reading: _**Found you.**_

“Do you have any idea who might have left this?” Asked Ward.

“Yeah, I do.”

***

Two and a half years ago, Lucy Harris didn’t exist.

Jennie Perkins, however, was living a quiet life in Tacoma, Washington. She worked as a teacher at a highly regarded private school and lived with her boyfriend of a year and a half, Dave West.

One day in the early spring, an FBI agent approached her, out of the blue. She told Jennie that her boyfriend was not who he claimed to be, but a murderer and drug dealer involved with organized crime. She brought boxes of photos and documents: not enough for a legal conviction but more than enough to convince Jennie, who was undone by the news. She was shocked and unmoored. Everything she knew about the person she thought she loved had been a lie.

The agent convinced her to hide cameras and listening devices in strategic locations around the house. She advised Jennie to “act normal” until they could build an airtight legal case.

Easier said than done. Overnight she’d gone from a relatively carefree life to being essentially a spy, knowing that her partner was living a double life and trying to make sure he’d be arrested. Acting normally without tipping off a paranoid criminal required tremendous effort.

After a couple of months, something violent happened at their house while Jennie was at work. She never found out what it was. In fact, she never saw the inside of that house again. The takeaways from the incident were 1) that one of the cameras was knocked loose in front of Dave and his “colleagues,” and 2) that Dave probably knew Jennie had hidden it, and was cooperating with the feds.

The agent and Jennie agreed that they would fake Jennie’s death (an elaborately staged car accident) and she would move out of state under an assumed name until the trial was over. The FBI slotted enough resources to help her get set up, and Lucy Harris was “born.”

About a month ago, Lucy received notice that the trial was about to start. The FBI agent had contacted Lucy/Jennie to start making arrangements for her to come and testify.

That phone call was the last time anyone had heard from the agent.

A week later, they found her body in a field by the highway.

Her apartment had been torn up as if someone was looking for something… Lucy had a pretty good idea of what. Not quite three weeks after that when the package had shown up on Lucy’s door.

“So,” Lucy concluded. "Billie and I decided to find a new place. Luckily, her brothers had an empty rent house right next door so we could move pretty quickly. I was just starting to feel okay again, but the same afternoon we moved, someone slashed two of my tires. They left this.” She reached into her bag to pull out the knife and note. She couldn’t look Nick in the eye when he picked up the note full of slurs and read it.

“Apparently, he’s close by, and he knows where I am. And I don’t know what to do. So I wanted to just report this, just in case there’s some way to find him or stop him.”

There was a moment’s pause, as the officers digested what she had told them.

Daryl spoke first. “Damn,” he said. “That’s… a lot. Look I know this is a long shot, but I don’t suppose you have any evidence about this? Before we commit to any security detail, we’ll need some hard proof." Lucy looked up, surprised. She let out a sudden sharp laugh.

“Oh no, I have tons of evidence! Boxes and boxes. I made copies of everything I gave to the agent. It’s all in a safety deposit box. I’m pretty sure that’s the only reason I’m still alive. I haven’t visited it in months, but it’s all there.”

“We’ll need to see it.”

“Well then you’ll need to figure out how to get me there unrecognized, because I am pretty sure he’s following me.” Nick swallowed hard. Had he followed them on their date? Lucy looked at him, a guilty expression washing over her face.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, Nick. I should have. I just… it seems like I keep putting more and more people at risk. I had a great time with you, but I don’t blame you if…” she shook her head. She didn’t have to say it. She knew he’d want to call it off. Hot tears sprang to her eyes, as the reality of the whole situation settled on her. It was the first time she’d talked about this in two years to anyone except Billie.

“Lucy, you haven’t done anything wrong. Daryl, could you give us a minute?” After his partner left, Nick moved close enough to lay a strong hand on her forearm and look straight in her eyes. “Lucy, I know we just met, but... I really like you. I’m not going anywhere. It’s going to take more than that to get rid of me.”

“More than a murdering psychopath?” she said with a skeptical laugh. He raised his eyebrows.

“Murdering psychopaths? I eat those for breakfast. They go great with that kale smoothie.” He didn’t often make jokes, but when he did, they seemed to have been borrowed from cop movies. Lucy broke into a loud laugh, part nerves and part surprise, and hugged him.

“Now, tell us everything that might help us track down this asshole.”

***

Later, on patrol, Nick broke several minutes of silence with a pointed question. “Something on your mind, partner?”

“I guess not.”

“You ‘guess’ not? The fuck does that mean?”

“If you don’t want to tell me about your business, then I _guess_ it’s not my place to say shit about shit.”

“Meaning?” Nick asked gruffly.

“Why didn’t you mention she was human?”

“Does it matter?”

“You know what all those assholes at the station are gonna...”

“Does it matter to YOU, Daryl?”

Daryl looked out of the window, not answering. After a few seconds, he spoke. “You should have told me.” “

Ward,” Jakoby started, keeping as even a tone as he could, “are you upset because I didn’t tell you, or are you upset because you don’t think orcs and humans should date?”

Ward paused again, and tried to choose his words carefully. “Each of the nine races do their own thing, you know that. That’s why there’s peace.”

Nick snorted, a humorless laugh. It was two steps forward, two steps back with his partner.

“Peace?! Is that what you see out here?” Driving through an Orcish district, they saw gang-tagged graffiti on every wall, smashed windows covered with plywood boards, crime scene tape around one corner, and a group of teen orcs glaring at them. In the distance they could see a billboard advertising jewelry. It read: “exclusively available in the Elf District.”

“I’ll tell you what I see,” Nick concluded, “a powder keg. I don’t think keeping people separate is really helping anything.”

He continued: “Look, Lucy and I didn’t plan this, and we’ve only had one date, but I really like her. How the fuck does that hurt anyone?”

After another pause, Ward finally spoke. “What about her? I mean, you’re used to all the bullshit people say. Do you really want to put her through that?”

Daryl had struck a chord. Nick hated to think of Lucy - of anyone - being insulted or attacked because of him.

“She’s not naive, Ward,” Nick responded in a softer tone.

“It’s her choice to make, and mine. No one else’s.”

“I just… it’s not going to be easy for you.”

“Maybe not. Since when do I take the easy road?” Nick asked, smiling a little. “I’m used to people - humans, orcs, whoever - saying shit to me. They’re going to do that anyway.” He stopped for a minute. “I know they say shit about me to you, too.”

It wasn’t an accusation, but Daryl felt a pang of guilt. Had he heard what the other officers said about him on a daily basis in the locker room? Had Daryl even spoken up? He couldn’t remember.

“I’m not asking you to confront them. I don't need you to fight my battles. I’m just asking - in this situation, with Lucy - if people get ugly, it would mean a lot to me to know I had your support… if I do have it.”

Nick looked at him with questioning eyes and Daryl sighed. He’d never known any orc-human couples and it just seemed odd to him, but Nick had a point: who did it hurt? Nick’s request was so sincere it cut through anything Daryl might have said in protest.

Besides that, Daryl thought of Lucy’s story. How were they ever going to find this guy? A little orc/human racial tension might be the least of their worries.

More than anything he kept thinking, what if the tables were reversed?

What would Nick say if Daryl asked for his support, for anything? He would offer it without hesitation, of course.

“Yeah,” Daryl replied at last. “You got it, Nick.”

***

Across town, Dave West paced in his makeshift room: an abandoned shipping container at the very far end of the docks. At his feet lay a spectrum of weapons, but he would have to add to these: most of them wouldn’t do too much on the orcs that were protecting Jennie now. He logged onto his computer to keep tabs on her through the GPS tracker he’d placed on her car. The police station, huh? He wondered if it was business or pleasure.

He flipped through the photos he’d taken of Jennie and the orc police officer on their date. If she was involving the police, he thought he might need to move a little more quickly than he had planned, but there was still no sign of her visiting any storage units or banks with safety deposit boxes. He had to wait, for now. As long as that evidence was out there, he was in danger of not only criminal conviction, but he was in danger from all of the other people who were mentioned or implicated in whatever she had gathered. He’d be better off in prison than out and “free” with them as his enemies. No, for now, he just had to wait for her to slip up.

Once he destroyed the evidence, he could get rid of Jennie - or whatever she was calling herself these days - and anyone else who got in his way.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few notes about this chapter:  
> 1) this is the first chapter with smut in it. Be forewarned!  
> 2) up until now, I’ve been cross-posting chapters from tumblr, importing them, editing a little, and posting. Now, I’m all caught up. This means future chapters will take a bit longer to post, because they are not already written. I promise they will happen!

“So, do you want to impress him with your cooking, or do you want to get in his pants?”

Billie and her current girlfriend - a half-human, half-Orc named Jade - were helping Lucy make a dessert for tonight’s dinner date at Nick’s House. It was Saturday afternoon so they had plenty of time, and Billie was trying to convince her to make a traditional Orcish dessert that she swore always helped her seal the deal, instead of the Tiramisu that was her specialty.

“Geeze Billie. It’s just dinner.”

“Is it?”

“I don’t want to push it, it’s still super new.” Lucy responded, trying to feign modesty.

Billie blinked twice and continued to stare at her as if to say “that’s not an answer.”

“This will only be our third date.”  
Billie just shrugged. Her expression was unchanged. Lucy sighed and laughed.

“Fine. Pants.”

Billie clapped her hands and went around the kitchen gathering pots and pans.

“You’d better quit teasing her, love, or she’s going to stop talking to you about this,” warned Jade, giving her lover a peck before leaving the room to go shower.

“Who’s teasing?” Billie called after her. “I’m performing a valuable service here. Getting my roommate laid is serious business!”

“A little louder, please, I don’t think the LAPD heard you,” said Lucy, pointing to a light fixture.

For the past five days, her home and work had been under surveillance via hidden cameras and listening devices. It was an odd feeling, but she felt relieved that the risk to her friends and students was mitigated. Nick gave her updates on their search for Walker when he could. In the meantime she just had to practice patience.

Lucy and Nick had texted each other lots since last Monday at the station, but they’d only seen each other twice. On Tuesday, Nick had been able to get away for an impromptu lunch date, and they had met for a picnic in a park near her school. He’d brought an honest-to-god picnic basket full of bread, fruits, and cheeses.

On Thursday afternoon Lucy came to the station to surprise Nick with his favorite smoothie (he had texted that he was craving it) but he was nowhere to be seen when she arrived. While she waited, an officer she’d never seen before approached her.

“I’ve seen you here before - are you the one who’s fucking the orc?” Lucy was too shocked to answer. “When you get done with that pigskin, let me know. I bet you’ve never seen what a real man can do. I’ll make you forget all about that dirty pig nose.” He raked his eyes up and down over her body in a way that made her feel like she needed a shower. “We could have fun…”

“Oh yeah? Is that why your wife left, because you’re so ‘fun?’ Get the fuck out of here, asshole!” came a voice from right behind her. Lucy spun around to see Officer Ward. She was grateful but confused: the last time she’d seen him he was downright cold to her.

“Hey, Lucy. Nick will be back any minute. You can just sit down next to my desk if you want.”

“Officer Ward- thank you. That was…” she couldn’t finish. She was shaking with anger and shock.

“Yeah. Look, don’t worry about him. He’s an idiot.”

Apparently so, she thought. An awful thought occurred to her. “Do people here talk to him like that?” Ward gave her a tired look.

“What do _you_ think?”

Lucy felt sick. She didn’t know what to say. Ward softened his tone when he saw the look on her face.

“Look- don’t worry about Nick. He knows how to ignore assholes like that. He’s kinda had to.”

She wondered if she’d made things worse for him by showing up unannounced. “Please don’t tell him about that?”

“Wasn’t planning on it.”

Just then, Nick walked in the room.

“Lucy, what are you doing here?” He asked, grinning broadly. His smile was infectious and she felt herself grinning back.

“I didn’t want you to get kale withdrawals,” she said, smiling and handing him the smoothie. “But I can’t stay: late meetings at school.”

“Well, it was a lovely surprise. Hey I was going to text you: do you have plans Saturday evening?”

Lucy shook her head “no.”

“I’d like to have you for dinner.”

Lucy bit the inside of her cheek to stop from reacting, but some expression on her face must have given away her stifled laugh. “Oh, _really_?”

“Over! I mean, I’d like to have you over, to my house, and then cook dinner, and then we would eat dinner… together.” The more flustered he got, the more adorable she found him.

“Sounds wonderful, Nick. I’ll bring dessert.” It sounded dirtier than she meant but in the context of this conversation, she decided to just let him wonder.

She scanned the room to make sure no one else was around before she leaned up to give him a quick kiss on the lips, and then she left.

***

Now that Saturday was here, Billie and Lucy were covered in flour, waiting for the Orcish dessert to bake. Billie swore that any orc would flip out over the dish, a pie with a flaky pastry crust and a filling of cheesecake and spiced fruit. The only other place to get the dish locally was from a bakery that packaged their goods down by the docks. Billie said orcs could always taste the strong smells of ocean and fuel on their pies, so most never ate the dish unless they learned how to make it.

“Billie, can I ask you something? Do you ever get shit for dating humans or elves?” Billie dated female-identified people of all races, and had once jokingly described her dating life as inspired by the United Nations’ mission statement: “I seek to foster a spirit of collaboration among all nations.”

With her confidence, her tall, well-built frame, and her impeccable soft butch fashion sense, these were not empty words. Billie was never lonely long.

“Sure,” She said matter-of-factly. “All the goddamn time.” Billie had started cleaning as she answered. “Why? Something happen?”

“Oh, just some jerk. It caught me off guard, but it’s fine. I don’t know if I should tell Nick about it though.”

“Yeah, I probably wouldn’t, but that’s just me. I’m sure he hears plenty at the station.”

Lucy was quiet for a minute.

“I hate that for him… and for you, too.”

***

Nick could smell the dessert before Lucy even knocked on the door. It couldn’t be… That particular fruit and cheese pie was usually only served on Orcish holidays, and, per tradition, was served to children first, with adults splitting the leftover crumbs. Most adult orcs had nostalgic cravings for the dish but went years and years without tasting it, so that the young orcs could develop the same fond memories.

“Lucy, is that what I think it is?!” He asked, flinging open the door to greet her, eyes wide.  
She nodded.

“Billie helped me make it. She said it would… be a hit.”

“It smells incredible!” He said excitedly, his nostrils flaring rapidly as he breathed the heavenly scent deeply. “Do you know that you can’t find this ANYWHERE? There’s only one bakery in town who sells it, but their bakery is down by the docks so their food always smells terrible… at least to orc noses. HEY! Maybe we could have a little of this before dinner? Just a small slice? Oh WOW I can’t believe you did this!”

Billie was right about the dessert, she thought.

Nick welcomed her into his home and brought the pastry into the kitchen. She followed him and, as soon as his hands were free, wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him close for a deep kiss. He returned her kiss and pulled her into his embrace. The sensation of his strong hands on her back gave her a rush, and she reached up to run her fingers over the back of his neck as they lingered in their kiss.

“Hey, you,” She purred, when they pulled away for a moment.

“Well, hello, yourself. I’ve got dinner almost ready to go in the oven. Would you like a glass of wine?” She accepted and they chatted while dinner cooked.

Dinner was delicious: They had a salad to start, with vegetables grown in Nick’s own garden. The main course was pasta shells stuffed with spinach and ricotta cheese, served in a spicy tomato sauce. Not fancy but delicious, prepared with care and skill. They talked about their work and the week ahead: Career Day was set for Monday, now two days away. When it was time for dessert, Nick was in heaven. This pie tasted JUST ones he’d had as a child. He made appreciative noises while he ate… low growls and whispers that nearly made Lucy blush.

She reminded herself to thank Billie for insisting on that dessert.

As she was helping him clean up, he suddenly had a thought and paused.

“Hey Lucy- when you came to see me the other day, did something… happen at the station? Ward wouldn’t say anything but I could tell that you were upset. Did he do or say something that bothered you?” He put his hand on her shoulder. “You can tell me.”

“Was Ward bothering me?” How to respond….

“Actually, just the opposite.”

Nick furrowed his brow. “You… were bothering… _him_?”

“No, babe,” she laughed. “Look I didn’t want to even mention this, but someone was being ugly to me, about… well, about you… and Ward told him off. Yelled at him, called him a few choice words. It was…really kind of sweet, in an odd, foul-mouthed way.”

Nick didn’t press her about the specifics, but he was relieved and grateful. Ward was a man of his word.

After a moment, Nick and Lucy curled up on his couch to watch a movie. Nick stretched his arm along the back of the couch and Lucy nuzzled into his chest.

After a few minutes, Lucy relaxed into him, and Nick loved the way her body felt against his. Absentmindedly, she started to rake the fingers of one hand up and down along his thigh. She only realized she was doing it when she heard him inhale sharply and lightly cover her hand with his free one, stopping it from moving.

“Sorry, was it distracting?”

“Honestly,” he said with a faint grin, “I have no idea what’s been happening in this movie for the last few minutes.”

A wicked smile spread over Lucy’s face and she turned on the couch to face him. In one fluid movement, she swung a leg over him until she was straddling him, on her knees on the couch. Her hair tumbled over his face as she leaned in to kiss him. He put both of his hands on her hips and kissed back hungrily. She rolled her hips into him as they did so, and it drove him wild.

Gently, she pushed up his sweater and let her hands explore his chest. His skin felt a little rough but smooth, warm, and solidly built.  
She wanted him, badly, but she felt hesitant. She was certainly no virgin but she’d avoided any romantic relationships since Dave West. She couldn’t shake the feeling of his betrayal of trust. The fact that someone she’d once thought she loved was now stalking and threatening her… it did a number on her.

Despite her desire for Nick, it was hard to think about being with someone in that way.

As they kissed, Nick’s hands traveled up her shirt as well. He’d never had a human lover and her skin felt like the most delicate, luxurious silk. She was so soft. Would he hurt her by grabbing her to him the way he wanted to? His desire for her overwhelmed him. Every one of his senses felt her arousal, but something else was holding her back. He could feel it clearly: fear.

“Lucy,” he told her, looking straight in her eyes. “If you don’t want to do this, it’s okay. Really.” How could be sense her hesitation, she wondered.

“It’s not that. Nick, I… I want to be with you. I just… have some issues with intimacy and trust.”

“I can tell that you’re afraid. You can be honest.” He pulled back somewhat as he spoke. She watched him and her heart fell: he thought it was fear of him. She reached both hands up to hold his face.

“Oh Nick. Please believe me: it’s not you. I haven’t been with anyone since… Dave. It’s been two years. I don’t know if I can just… I just don’t know. But I want to be with you.”

Nick could tell this was the truth and he was relieved - he hated to think that she might fear him - but also a little guilty that he hadn’t considered her experience.

“Lucy, the last thing I want is for you to be uncomfortable. Whatever you want to do tonight - go home, sleep on the couch, stay with me, whatever - that’s what I want, too. I’m not in any rush.”

Still straddling him, Lucy leaned down and kissed him again. “Well,” She said suggestively, “there are other things we could do…”

With that, Nick wound his arms around her and leaned forward, moving them both to a more horizontal location on the couch. They kissed for a few minutes until, flushed and breathless, Nick pulled back.

“Can I touch you?” He asked.

Lucy felt her sex throb at his question.

Breathless herself, she nodded as she managed to respond.

“Yes, Nick. Please.”

She sat up a little so that she could remove her pants and underwear while he watched.

She laid down on the couch before him.  
He stared at her, awestruck, for several seconds before pulling her into another deep kiss. He placed his hand on one knee and gently parted her legs, positioning himself in between them. As if he wasn’t already drunk on her arousal, the scent of her now hit him fully, filling his nose. Somehow, this beautiful woman was in his home, hungry for his touch. He breathed in deeply to enjoy her scent. He moved his hand, pushing up her shirt and rubbing his hand along her soft belly before slowly moving it downwards.

She felt his warm hand lightly brush against her folds. She gasped when he slid a finger in between, finding her eager clit. When he felt her wetness, he let out a low sound between a purr and a growl. She opened her legs wider and wrapped them around him as he continued to stroke her.

Lucy could feel his erection pressing against her as he leaned into her, just out of her reach. She looked up at him and made contact with his warm golden eyes. As she did, he moved his finger, slowly but firmly plunging it deep into her entrance. She gasped with pleasure. He moved back and forth, stroking her clit and slipping inside her, until he felt her tension build and focused on working her clit.

“Lucy,” he started, his voice a low rumble that resonated against her chest, “you feel amazing,”

“Oh Nick, please keep going! God it feels so good!”

He kissed her again, and the lip-to-lip contact pushed her close to her climax. They pulled apart and he looked straight in her eyes again. She felt her pleasure build in intensity as he stroked her over and over until finally, it spilled over. She cried out his name as she came, her hips bucking against him as her release rolled through her in waves.

When her orgasm finally passed, he removed his hand and held her to him tightly, kissing her tenderly on the lips once more.

***

About an hour later, Lucy woke up on the couch, alone, but covered by a soft blanket. She hadn’t even realized she’d fallen asleep. She wrapped herself in the blanket and went to find Nick, who was asleep in his bed. She sat on the far side and slowly edged her way in, until she was lying close to him. He moved suddenly and she thought she’d woken him, but he was still asleep. Oh well: she’d have to return the favor on a different night. Still asleep, he rolled over and wrapped a strong arm around her, pulling her close to him protectively. She backed into his embrace. As she drifted off, she realized she felt safer than she had at any point in the last two years, maybe in her whole life. She fell asleep almost instantly.


	7. Chapter 7

Career Day had arrived!

Lucy watched Nick make his way toward the school's front doors, almost an hour before any of the other speakers. Because of course he was. As he walked up the sidewalk to the school, Lucy took a minute to appreciate his attractive build as he moved: a confident gait that was almost a swagger, his police uniform taut across his powerful form. She noticed that he was carrying a small wrapped gift in one hand.

As she turned to go back to her desk, she saw that she wasn’t the only one paying attention: Half of her class were gathered around the windows, watching and making comments:

“Oh wow… that's really him!”

“What a _SNACK_.”

“Look at his thighs, you guys. I mean just look at them.”

“OKAY guys!” Lucy called, grabbing their attention. “Officer Jakoby is our guest today. Be respectful. Have a seat, please.”

Today’s other speakers included a few parents who worked in real estate and business, an elf fashion designer, a Brezzik who was one of the current hosts of Antiques Road Show, and a few members of an up and coming band who had just had their first big hit song.

But Officer Jakoby was the one the school was really excited about. As the first orc policeman in the nation, he was seen among these students as a groundbreaker and kind of an icon for Orc equality. For those students who had misgivings about the police, his hiring was a sign of hope: maybe things would change with a more diverse police force. 

For the whole student body, his speech would be today's main attraction.

She couldn’t wait to see his face when he found that out.

***

Yesterday, Lucy had awoken at Nick's house to a breakfast of pancakes and scrambled eggs. She'd hoped to stay a bit longer, and maybe pick up where they had left off from the previous night, but she got a call from Billie that something was wrong at their house. Billie was trying to downplay it, but Lucy knew she should leave. She left Nick with a lingering kiss and told him she hoped to see him again very soon.

"I'll see you tomorrow, right?" he asked.

"Career Day - yes! Just check in at the front office a few minutes before 9:00am."

"I'm looking forward to it. Let me know if you need any help back at home."

She was a nervous wreck as she drove back. Had Dave broken into their home? She found her front door had been kicked in, and for a moment she swore she felt her heart stop in her chest. To her surprise, Billie looked more annoyed than anything else. 

"My dumbass brothers - they had a little party last night and one of their "guests" got confused - by which I mean plastered - and thought this was their place."

"Sorry, Billie!" called Sid, who was in the front yard, helping to clean up the broken glass.

"Don't be _sorry_ , just don't be _stupid_! I don't want your knucklehead friends breaking my house!" Billie threw a roll of paper towels at him from inside. It missed Sid but rolled underneath Lucy's car.

She went to retrieve it and saw an odd blinking red light that she knew shouldn't be there: a tracking device.

_Shit._

Ward and Jakoby would have told her if this was the work of the LAPD. It must be Dave... how long had it been there? She felt a chill as she got ready to call Nick.

***

On Monday morning, Nick walked into the school with a stomach full of butterflies, both nervous to speak to a group and excited to see Lucy. He thought the air smelled odd - it reminded him of something he'd sensed on the day of his smoothie date with Lucy - but he disregarded it for the moment.

As he entered the school, all other thoughts halted as he immediately felt dozens of pairs of eyes fall on him. He swallowed and tried to project an air of confidence, but suddenly he felt just like he did when he was a student himself: conspicuous, out of place, wrong.

Was this a mistake?

Then slowly, a sound started to spread through the halls. First once, then again, then. It was so disorienting that it took him a minute to register the sound of applause.

_Applause?_

The students were giving him a round of applause. He really couldn't believe it. There were a few shouts mixed in as well: "woo!" "Yeah, Officer Jakoby!" He tried to stifle a smile as he nodded here and there to the students he made eye contact with as he made his way to check in at the office.

***

Nick started a bit rocky due to nerves. He knocked over a stool placed on the stage in the auditorium and nearly knocked over the microphone stand while righting it.

Once he started speaking, however, his nerves melted away. He told them all about his decision to become an officer (not the full version he'd shared with Lucy on their date), the education and training that was needed, and what a typical day on duty was like. His honesty and earnest demeanor were magnetic and the students hung on every word. His genuine love for his work shined through all he said.

After his presentation he asked for questions. For a moment, silence hung in the air. He started to feel like a fool. Of course no one would have any.

But boy, did they...

”Officer Jakoby, have you ever shot anyone?”

”Do you have a girlfriend? Or a boyfriend?”

”Is it hard when you have to arrest other orcs?”

”Are you ever concerned that you’re just a pawn in a system that promotes elf supremacy and systematically disenfranchises orcs and other races?”

He was pretty quick on his feet with his answers, admitting that some parts of his work were more complicated than others, and deftly avoiding the romance question. He passed out his business cards and encouraged the students to call him if they ever needed his help.

"Before I leave the presentation today," he started, "I wanted to thank a special person in this room." Nick fumbled with the small gift as he spoke. Lucy had no idea where he was going with this.

"Gilda, would you mind coming forward?"

Shocked and wide-eyed, the young orc who had first invited Nick to speak slowly rose to her feet and made her way up to the stage. Lucy held her breath, knowing well how anxious her student could be.

"Gilda, I wanted to thank you for coming to invite me to speak at your school. I was honored to come and spend some time with you all today. Also," he began, "I heard from your teachers here at the school that you have a special interest in studying law. I wanted to give you something to say thank you for your invitation, and hopefully to encourage your studies."

He held the box to her and she gingerly took it, eyebrows raised in a questioning expression, as if she couldn't quite believe this was happening.

She opened the package slowly and found a small necklace: a delicate silver chain with a dangling charm shaped like the scales of justice, and another charm that was a silver disc engraved with the words: "Justice is truth in action." It wasn't a terribly fancy or expensive gift, but Gilda thought she'd never seen anything more beautiful. She closed the box and held it to her chest for a second before raising her head to meet Officer Jakoby's eye in what she thought was a professional manner. She held a hand out for him to shake, and he took it, warmly smiling at her.

"Thank you very much, Officer Jakoby," she managed.

"No, Gilda, thank you for inviting me here today," he responded in a low voice, stepping away from the microphone stand. "Truly." She beamed with pride as she descended the stairs to leave the stage and go back to her seat.

Soon after, the bell rang, dismissing the students to lunch.

"Well, Officer, I think you were a hit!" said Lucy, approaching him after the room had mostly emptied. "Can I treat you to the finest lunch three dollars can buy?"

"Hey, guys! Great job on the event, Lucy," said Billie, who had made her way down to the front of the auditorium where Lucy and Nick stood. "Nick I think you just made Gilda's year. I just saw her taking three of my second graders to the library for tutoring... She's gonna have that goofy grin plastered on her face for the rest of the day."

Nick squinted a bit, but his expression was hard to interpret. He shook his head slowly before responding.

"The students... they really _were_ excited to hear from me..." He said it like it was just sinking in.

"Yeah, Nick. They really really were." Lucy told him with a gentle grin.

"Are you guys going to lunch in the cafeteria?" Billie asked.

"Yeah, want to come with?" Lucy asked, and the trio headed towards lunch. The auditorium and the cafeteria were on opposite sides of the campus, so they had a short walk outside to get there. Along the way, Lucy and Billie laughed about her brother's friend breaking down their door in his drunken state. Nick was glad that Lucy had a friend like Billie. Orcs could hold grudges like you wouldn't believe, but they could also be incredibly loyal friends. He marveled that he'd had more positive interactions with orcs in this school building today than the rest of his life combined. Maybe there really is hope for the future, he thought, seeing an elf, a human, and two orcs playing Four Square on the school's blacktop.

They were walking just in front of the school's main doors, when the peculiar smell hit Nick's nose again. The smell he sensed after smoothies, and again this morning. He stopped in his tracks. It wasn't a smell, but... a vibration, from deep in the earth.

"Hey, do you guys-"

"Yep," interrupted Billie, not waiting for him to finish. Her posture was tense and still, her ears twitching and pupils wide. Something was wrong.

"What are you two-" Lucy didn't get the chance to finish her question, as a monster earthquake bellowed up and rolled through, violently convulsing the ground.

It was definitely the strongest one Lucy had ever felt. It sounded like a freight train barreling down on them and it seemed to last forever. Classrooms full of frightened students poured out of the front doors, walking hand in hand the whole way, as they hurried to clear the building. Loose rocks and pebbles fell from the roof and teachers started shouting COVER YOUR HEADS. Lucy looked up at the bell tower and saw an enormous crack that she swore wasn't there before. Evacuating the building was an optional part of the earthquake drills they practiced twice a year, so Lucy knew that this quake was serious.

Several minutes passed, and everyone stayed frozen even after the shaking had eased, as if any slight disturbance would send the ground back into terrifying rolling spasms.

The principal stood toward the front of the building and counted off each grade level to make sure all students were accounted for:

"Kindergarten?"

"Here, all 22 are here," answered the Kindergarten teacher.

"Good, first grade?"

"Thirty-one, all accounted for."

"Second grade?" This was Billie's class, and her students had been at lunch in the cafeteria with the teacher's aide. The aide spoke up.

"Twenty-four... three students are missing."

Billie a panicked face. At the same time, the Library/Media Specialist ran outside, frantic.

"Help! Please! There are injured students in the library!"

Panic started to roll through the crowd, just as violently as the earthquake had. Some grabbed their phones, but services were overloaded and no one could call in or out. Some tried to head to the cars to drive for help and others tried to head back to the building. Amidst the chaos, Lucy heard a familiar, deep voice.

"Attention, please!" Nick called out over the crowd. "Teachers and students, please remain in the open field until phone lines reopen. Does anyone here have any emergency training?" Two people - a high school senior and the visual arts instructor - raised their hands. "You two, follow me. The rest of you, stay out of the building. There may be exposed power lines or falling items. Emergency crews will be stretched thin all over town and may not be able to get here quickly, so we need to stay safe." With that, he turned toward the building.

Lucy grabbed his arm. "Nick - the students in the library. Gilda was headed there with the second graders who needed tutoring help. What if she's..." Nick sharply inhaled and nodded solemnly before going back into the building. She wanted to go help but she knew she knew she should stay with her frightened students. She waited while the principal finished the headcount for each grade, her eyes fixed on the front door of the school.

***

Nick and the volunteers made their way carefully but quickly to the library. When they got there, Nick felt like he'd been punched in the gut.

There didn't seem to be structural damage, but entire shelves full of books had toppled over. Nick heard voices near what had been the tallest bookcase, and where now lay a wooden table, crushed to splinters. 

"Help!" cried a small voice, "We're stuck under here!"

"We're here and we will get you out!" Nick called back. Diligently, the three lifted piles and piles of books. Nick lifted the mostly-empty bookcase by himself and went back to the pile. Eventually, they were able to see the students. Three second-graders jumped up, thankfully unharmed. Nick instructed the volunteers to check for injuries before escorting the younger students outside. Meanwhile, he turned his attention to the other student.

Gilda was unconscious and unresponsive. Apparently, she had ushered the younger students underneath the wooden table when the books started falling, and had tried to shield them with her body as the table started to give way.

Nick felt tears spring to his eyes as he began CPR, unable to find a pulse or any sign of breathing.

***

This was an odd turn of events, thought Dave to himself, as he sat in his car outside of the school.

His initial plan that day was to incapacitate and abduct the orc, who he knew would be travelling to the school by himself. He was going to rear-end his car after he left and then inject him with a hypodermic needle full of orc-strength sedative. He'd then use him as bait to lure Lucy to the evidence she'd hidden away, and then eliminate them both. There were risks to this plan, of course: an abandoned police car would attract attention, and he wasn't sure what the best way would be to murder them without leaving any evidence. Guns were the easy option, of course, but Dave didn't have one and didn't want to let any of his underworld contacts know he was in town. It seemed that the officer wasn't carrying his piece either, so he'd have to come up with a Plan B.

Decisions, decisions.

Of course, it was all a moot point, now. The earthquake had really fucked up his kidnapping and murder plans, he chuckled to himself. No, now he'd have to go back to his original plan of somehow finding Lucy alone and "convincing" her to lead him to the evidence.

Now he'd have to stick closer to her and wait for the next time she was alone.

***

Nick walked to the school's front door with Gilda in his arms and heavy steps. She was alive - barely - but she needed medical attention _now_. He had no idea what the extent of her injuries may be and knew he shouldn't jostle her too much. As he walked outside and toward the light, he stopped for a minute to lay Gilda on a stretcher that had been brought out from the nurses' office.

In that moment, he was solely focused on the young child and didn't hear the ear-splitting CRACK sound from up above that startled the group.

He didn't think anything odd about Lucy running toward him at full speed. She would be concerned for her student.

He didn't see the large piece of plaster break free of the bell tower above and tumble down to earth - at least a 50 pound chunk heading straight for Nick's head.

He barely registered Lucy throwing herself into him and knocking him backward, to safety, as it fell.

He almost didn't even know what happened when he saw the plaster land squarely on top of Lucy... and when he saw her blood splattered on his hands.


	8. Chapter 8

Billie took a gulp of the stale diesel fuel the hospital was passing off as coffee and sat up straighter in the scratchy waiting room chair, attempting to will herself awake as she waited for any news about Lucy or Gilda.

For the last two days, Billie was either at work or at this hospital, waiting and drinking this shitty coffee.

Lucy was going to be okay, at least. The plaster had cracked into smaller pieces before hitting her, resulting in mostly surface injuries: a head wound that bled profusely but that was easily stitched, a concussion, a broken shin, and numerous cuts and bruises. Remarkably, she did not require surgery and would most likely be released in another day after a bit more observation. She was in and out of consciousness, but Billie was grateful she would pull through.

Gilda was another story. Her injuries were far more severe and she hadn’t yet opened her eyes since the earthquake. 

Billie had insisted on riding in the police car as Nick drove to the ER, applying pressure to Lucy’s wounds as they rode so that she wouldn’t bleed out on the way, and trying to keep both as still as possible.

At the ER, one of the intake nurses asked for Gilda’s next of kin... and Billie was gutted as to realize that Gilda didn’t have a single name to enter. She’d lied and given her own name, saying she was an aunt. No one questioned her.

Since then, she’d kind of thought of herself that way, and since Lucy was more or less stable at this point she was glued to Gilda’s bedside. Every few minutes she looked up to scan the child for a sign - any sign - of movement. Nothing so far. She sank back into her chair and resolved to wait as long as needed.

Her heart broke at the possibility of Gilda waking up in her hospital room completely alone. How could such a good-natured kid have no one to look out for her?

It broke more to think she might never wake up.

* * *

Like most orcs, family was everything for Billie. She grew up idolizing her two older brothers, hoping to become a Fogteeth member herself someday.

When she was Gilda’s age, Billie was a real tomboy and was often treated as “one of the guys,” or at least like one of the guys’ little brothers. They used her as a "lookout" for some of their small-scale robberies and she was ashamed to remember feeling proud about that. As a kid, she saw her brothers as The Good Guys, no matter what, and the rest of the world - humans, elves, etc. - were villains. She'd justified some of their criminal activities by the idea that anything that benefited orcs and hurt humans was somehow righting the injustices she saw around her.

As she go a bit older, she started to understand that the world didn't work in absolutes. The more she understood about the world outside of her neighborhood, the more all the stories she told herself grew cracks, and those cracks spiderwebbed out, connecting facts and shattering long-held assumptions. Maybe, she was forced to admit, maybe her brothers weren't The Good Guys.

The first time she wondered who, exactly, her brothers really were was the first time she saw them actually hurt someone, punching and kicking a shop owner they were robbing. He hadn't done anything to draw their attention, he just happened to run a convenience store. The second time, the time she really pulled back, was when her first girlfriend had been shot in the leg by a stray bullet. The third time was the final straw. She was serving as a lookout for another convenience store robbery, and a small human child - no older than 6 or 7 - came up to her and asked who the men were who were talking to her daddy. Billie knew the child couldn't hear the sick thuds of body blows that her orcish ears detected, and she just stared at the child, unable to speak.

She went home that night and cried harder than she'd ever cried in her life, feeling guilty, torn, and trapped in a life she finally started to understand and resent.

Oddly, it was through the encouragement of a human teacher in high school that Billie built up the courage to confront her brothers. Her teacher saw real promise in Billie and encouraged her to apply for college, something no one else in her family had done. She sent Billie scholarship opportunities and articles about how to strengthen college applications. She asked her every week about her plans. Without that teacher, Billie didn't know if she could envision a different life than the one that was slowly taking hold of her.

Because of that teacher, Billie had made it her life's mission to be a positive influence on others, especially other orcs. She knew the impact that a teacher could have and teaching became her goal.

For their part, her brothers supported her in her decision not to follow in their footsteps, even though she never hid how she felt about their criminal activities. It was an uneasy version of "agreeing to disagree" that seemed to somehow work: Billie drew clear boundaries and her brothers respected them. The three of them had enough love and devotion to keep that commitment... at least, that’s what Billie hoped.

* * *

Nick walked into the hospital after his shift with arms full: flowers for Lucy and Gilda and a cup of what he hoped was “some decent fucking coffee,” per Billie’s request.

He walked in Gilda’s room and held out the coffee to Billie.

“Sweet Jirak, thank you,” she told him, shaking her head to wake herself.

"You’re welcome. Any news?”

"Lucy's been awake, off and on all day. She'll be thrilled to see you. No change for Gilda."

"And you? Have you been here all-"

"I'm not leaving," she snapped. It sounded harsher than she meant it. Nick didn't take her response personally. He placed Gilda's flowers - a small pot of violets - on the windowsill.

"If you want," he said in a soft voice, "I can come in here after I visit with Lucy so you can take a break, get a bite to eat or something."

Billie nodded but said nothing. Nick patted her shoulder gently before leaving the room.

* * *

To his delight, Lucy was awake when he came in, and all smiles.

"Hey, cutie!" she greeted him. 

"Hey, yourself! These are for you," he said, placing a large flower arrangement on the counter facing her.

"They're beautiful! Come here and kiss me so I can thank you!" Nick happily obliged. "The doctors said I might get to go home tomorrow. Are you free? Maybe I could make you some dinner or something." He smiled as he relaxed into a chair by her bedside. Seeing her covered in bruises and cuts was torture, but he knew she wouldn't want his pity, so he tried not to stare.

"That would be nice. How are you feeling?"

"Oh, you know, like a building fell on me," she smirked. He reached out a hand for hers and slowly brought it to his mouth, kissing it. If he had sustained the kind of injuries she had, he'd already be back at work, thanks to orcs' healing abilities. Then again, if that piece of player had fallen on his head, as it appeared it would, he might not be here at all. He still couldn't believe she had risked her life for him. The thought filled him with gratitude and guilt.

"Well, do me a favor and try not to leap in front of any more falling debris."

She shrugged. "I can't make any promises. Hey, at least when I'm in here, there's people everywhere. I don't have to worry about Dave for a few days." She looked at him and tried to affect a casual tone as she asked, "Any news on that front, by the way? My car is back at the house - anyone get close to it?" They'd decided to leave the GPS tracker in place on her car now that they knew about it, in the hopes that they could use it against him at some point.

He just shook his head. All of their leads seemed to evaporate, and he felt like he was letting her down, time after time. 

Worrying about Dave was both terrifying and exhausting for them both. She thought of ways to change the subject. She started to wonder how Nick would react if she pulled him down into the hospital bed and started a vigorous make out session...

Some commotion from the hall stopped her from finding out.

“GUYS!” cried Billie from several doors down. “It’s Gilda- she’s awake. She’s awake!”

* * *

A day later, and Dave was ready to make his move. He’d already spent more time on this than he’d thought possible, and he was more than just angry, now. He wanted to be sure that bitch paid for it. He prepared two syringes full of sedatives, wrapped up a knife for good measure, and headed to the hospital in order to arrive before the orc cop’s shift ended. He didn’t mind killing him if needed, but a dead police officer was bound to sr

He looked in a mirror: his disguise wasn’t perfect but it didn’t have to be. The plan was to be in the hospital for five minutes, tops.

This bullshit would end _today_.

* * *

Sunshine! 

It felt so good, Gilda thought, raising her face to the sky and breathing in deeply. She was outside for the first time in three days, and she was trying to enjoy every second. Ms. Billie would be here any moment and Gilda wanted to surprise her by casually sitting on the bench outside, although the nurse was anxious to get her back in.

”FIVE more minutes, please?” Gilda pleaded, then pulled an over-dramatic face. “I almost died.”

The nurse rolled his eyes but smiled and relented. Gilda smiled and got ready to relax on the bench again, when suddenly - **BAM**.

A man rushing past had crashed right into Gilda, knocking her on the ground. He was tall, with a lean frame, and he didn't even pause to apologize as he rushed in. He was dressed in scrubs, but they didn't smell like they'd been inside this hospital before, ever. In fact, the smell lingering after him was altogether... peculiar to Gilda.

“ _Hey asshole_ , watch where you’re going!” Called the nurse, helping Gilda up. Gilda wasn't hurt but she felt unsettled. The man radiated hostility and anger. He wanted to hurt someone, she thought, but she didn't know why. 

Sniffing her arm where he had bumped right into her, she sensed an odd combination of smells. First, the ocean. She could smell seaweed and the kinds of fish that swam close to the shores. Next were the smells of fuel and creosote: odd chemical smells orcs could spot a mile away. Hovering just behind those, however, was something else that seemed completely out of place. Maybe she was mistaken? The last smell was something... sweet. Cookies? Pies? 

It didn't matter, she told herself, as the nurse helped her back inside to her room.

* * *

"What do you fucking mean, _someone knocked her over_?!" Gilda heard Billie shout on the other side of the door. She'd been out there for a while, at first talking to Gilda's social worker, and now yelling at the hospital staff. "Aren't you guys supposed to help her get better, not get her more fucking injured? **_You know that girl's a goddamn hero, right_**?!"

Gilda's heart swelled as Billie yelled. She was almost able to stop wondering what Billie and the social worker had been talking about. The dormitories at Saint Emydius were nice, and there were a few other students who stayed there, but she loved being in this hospital. There were so many people around all the time, and they all seemed to care about her. _Especially_ Ms. Billie. She was funny and even though she cussed a lot, and brought her homework - seriously, _homework in the hospital, Ms. Billie?_ \- Gilda knew she really cared about her. She tried to remember if this was what it was like living with her orc family...

After a few minutes, Billie came in. She walked right up to the bed with an excited expression that made her face look like it was lit from behind. She tried to talk in a serious was. 

"Gilda, the doctors say you are almost ready to leave the hospital. What do you think about that?"

Gilda's heart fell. She knew Billie was expecting her to be happy about this, and forced a smile.

"Oh... good news!"

"Well, the bad news is... the dormitories at school took some damage from the quake, and it will take at least a month to fix. I talked to your social worker, and she says - _if_ it's all right with you, and _if_ I pass a home inspection - and of course _if_ you want to, you could come and stay with me and Miss Harris for a while." Billie looked nervous as she spoke.

Gilda had never seen Billie nervous before, she thought of her as fearless. It touched her to realize how much she was hoping for Gilda to say yes. "What do you think?"

Gilda's eyes filled with tears and she couldn't speak. This was the best news she could have imagined. She sat up straight and pulled Billie into a tight hug.

"Yes! Yes! I want to stay with you, Ms. Billie!" 

* * *

Only a quick moment later, Billie burst into Lucy's room, beaming, and ran right up to her bedside. She was so excited that she didn't even notice the stricken look on Lucy's face.

"Lucy, honey, guess what? Gilda's going to stay with us for a couple of weeks!"

Lucy opened and closed her mouth, seemingly in shock.

"I know, I know. I should have talked to you about it first. Aw crap, is this a problem? What are you-" Suddenly, her heightened orcish senses realized that something was very wrong in this room, and it had nothing to do with her news.

She realized Lucy was trying to draw her attention to someone or something behind her.

Billie tried to turn around slowly, casually, but this small movement was all it took for the strange man in scrubs to leap towards her and plunge a syringe into her neck. Lucy tried to scream as her friend slumped to the ground but Dave's hand was already covering her mouth. He had another syringe in his hand, pointed at her.

"Miss me, Jennie? Or should I call you Lucy now?" Before she could respond, Dave plunged the other syringe in her neck and waited for her to go limp, depositing her unconscious body into a rented wheelchair. He dragged the orc's body behind the hospital bed and pulled the door mostly shut, then, as casually as possible, he wheeled Lucy down to the elevator and piled her in his car.

* * *

Nick had requested to leave a little early that afternoon, and he headed to the hospital. Lucy was getting discharged that day. He wanted to drive her home himself, and spend a little time together. It was a gorgeous, sunny day, with no sign of cloud or - he sniffed the air - earthquakes. He strolled onto the hall where Lucy's room was and noticed that her door was shut. He rapped a few times and waited for a response.

"Hmmm..." came a sound from the room. The voice sounded female, but it didn't sound like Lucy. His brow furrowed as it became more clear. "Heh- help. _HELP_!"

Nick flung the door open and saw Billie's hand waving from behind Lucy's hospital bed as she struggled to stand. " ** _HEELP! SOMEBODY!"_**

Lucy's bed was empty.


	9. Chapter 9

Lucy woke up in absolute darkness. The first thing she felt was screaming pain from her broken leg. She wondered if she could even see her fingers in front of her face, but when she tried to move, she found that both arms were restrained by her sides. Her non-broken leg was also tethered to whatever she was laying on. She felt a chill and realized that she was still only wearing her hospital gown. She strained her ears for any sign of movement but heard nothing. She was trapped here, wherever _here_ was, cold and alone.

 _Fuck_.

Panic started to set in as reality hit her, so she tried to go over the facts. Fact #1: She wasn’t dead, and that was definitely a tick in the "plus" column. That must mean fact #2: he _really_ needed to know what evidence she had on him.

She snickered to herself, thinking: _yeah, he should be nervous_. He'd left quite a trail and just assumed no one would ever have the guts to follow it. The recorded conversations, phone numbers, and other documents tied Dave to extortion, theft, assault and murders: enough to put him away for years. Plus, he had ripped off dozens of powerful and dangerous people. If any of that made it to the wrong hands Dave would be as good as dead.

For a second time she listened hard for any sign of footsteps or movement, but heard only a boat horn blowing in the distance. Fact #3: she was somewhere near water. She only hoped that Nick had been able to find some clue to lead him to her... and soon.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps approaching. A metal door started to slide open.

* * *

“We’ll find her,” Ward said, an effort to reassure his partner. It was late - almost midnight - on the same day that Lucy had disappeared. The two men had been at the station all night and fatigue was catching up to them.

"How can you say that? We have been trying to find this guy for a week and a half and we still have no leads.”

”I just know, Okay? There’s got to be something we’re overlooking. We will find her.”

Nick hung his head. “They say the first few hours are crucial to finding a missing person. What if it’s already too-“

” _DON’T_ talk like that. Just don’t.” Ward walked over to Nick, looking straight in his partner’s eyes. “We _will_ find her. Alive. I _promise_ you. Okay?”

Nick just nodded. He knew Ward might not be able to keep that promise, but his confidence was reassuring. It snapped Nick out of his funk long enough for him to refocus. 

He dove back into his files, trying to learn as much about West as he could. He remembered how her experiences with West left Lucy struggling to trust him, or anyone, even years later. This couldn’t end this way.

"Hey Nick?” Ward called from behind his desk, startling Nick. His brows were furrowed at the computer screen. “It looks like your girlfriend has quite a rap sheet of her own.”

"What do you mean?”

"I mean... petty larceny, disorderly conduct, possession... Yeah, you got a firecracker, there." Nick frowned at the computer screen. That was Lucy, all right. Arrests, mug shots... why hadn't she told him any of this?

"She tell you about any of this?" Daryl asked. Nick shook his head slowly, processing.

What else was she hiding?

* * *

At Billie and Lucy’s house, Gilda was getting settled in.

"Make a list of anything you need, and we'll get to the store this afternoon," said Billie. Gilda could see worry etched on her face, and reached out and gave her a hug.

"Ms. Billie, I know you're worried about Ms. Harris. If you want to go and help the police, it's fine. I'll be okay here."

Billie smiled and shook her head.

"I really don't think I'd be much help, but thank you. And please," she said, "we're not at school. You can just call me Billie here."

"HEY!" came a loud, male voice from the back door. Gilda jumped as Sid and Ty came in without knocking.

"Hey assho- I mean hey, guys," Billie called back. She reminded herself for the millionth time to clean up her language now that she was (even temporarily) responsible for a child. "This is Gilda, who I told you about. Gilda, these are my brothers, Sid and Ty."

"Gilda!" exclaimed the shorter of the two brothers, "I'm Sid. I hear you saved a few lives during that earthquake." He puffed out his chest to appear more authoritative as he spoke. "It's always nice to meet another brave orc." He held out his hand to shake Gilda's. She took it but looked back at Billie as she did, nervously.

"I'm Ty," Ty said, simply, shaking her hand. "You need anything, you let us know."

"Hey, we um, got you something." Sid held out a package, clumsily wrapped. Billie nodded to her, signaling that it was okay to take it. Gilda carefully removed the wrinkled paper and held up - an orc baby doll. Gilda was thirteen: this was a bit young for her, but she was so touched by the gesture that she held it close and thanked the guys profusely. They both looked away shyly as she thanked them. Ty held up a baseball and asked if she wanted to play catch. Gilda happily accepted and the three went out back.

Billie watched this introduction nervously. She wanted Gilda to feel comfortable here, and she knew her brothers would help out with anything she needed, but she wanted to be sure that they kept any criminal activity far fucking away from this child.

Then again, she thought, watching her brothers laugh more than she could remember, maybe having a kid around would be good for them. Maybe it would be good for them to remember there was life outside of the gang.

* * *

A shock of light spilled into the room where Lucy was being held. She winced as it hit her eyes and tried to wrench her face away from the door. As her eyes adjusted, she tried to take in more of her surroundings. She saw that she was in a small metal building - a shipping container, maybe? - restrained to a small bed in one corner.

"No yelling, no crying. I have to hand it to you," Dave began. "You're a model prisoner."

Lucy said nothing.

"Yeah that's fine. You'll be talking soon enough. Maybe some of my friends here will help with that..." He gestured to a table full of various knives and tools. "Or maybe  _your_ friends would be more motivating. Which of them would you be willing to sacrifice to hang on to that evidence? That kid? What do you think it would take to make the orc dyke beg for mercy? Or maybe... your new boyfriend, the cop?"

He scanned her face for reaction as he needled her, smirking as he saw anger flash across her eyes. "I know what you're thinking. They all seem tough at first, but everyone's got a line, when the pain just gets too much. Which one of them do you want to see bloody and begging me to stop?”

He smirked as he walked closer, stroking her face gently with a pair of pliers. She felt sick to her stomach.

"Do they still think you're innocent little Lucy Harris? What do you think that cop would say if he knew who you really were, before this little makeover? Would he want to sip fucking smoothies with you, if he knew you?"

Lucy stayed quiet but shut her eyes tightly to stop herself from crying. This bastard was doing this on purpose, and didn't deserve her fear.

“Then again... you and I did have some fun. Maybe we could have some fun down here... What do you say, for old times’ sake?” He rubbed the pliers along the side of her torso, and she tried in vain to pull away. He responded with a loud laugh and a heavy backhanded slap across her face.

”Oh relax. I’m not interested. I'm sure that cunt of yours is worn-out and worthless after fucking that orc. I’ll be back later. In the meantime," he told her as he shut the door, "Go ahead and scream if you want. Go nuts. No one's gonna hear shit."

” _Fuck you!_ ” Lucy yelled as Dave shut the door behind him, leaving her once again in darkness. Only after she was sure he was gone did she let her tears fall.

* * *

Before work the next morning, Nick decided to stop by Lucy's place one more time, just to see if there was anything he'd missed there. He remembered that he'd put the remainder of Lucy's holiday cake in the freezer and had pulled it out to thaw: Billie and Gilda would love it, he was sure.

Billie let him in, somewhat shocked at his appearance.

"Hey, Jakoby- You look like hell."

"I feel like hell," he said, his voice more gravelly than usual.

"You haven't slept... come and sit down for a minute. Is that the cake I helped Lucy make?"

Nick nodded as he set it on the table and crossed the room, slumping onto the couch. He rubbed a hand over his face as he sat. Lucy... he thought, or Jennie, or whoever else. Who was she? What was she running from? What was real? He thought of their smoothie date, and her admiring face while he spoke at her school. He trusted that this - that she - was real. It had to be real.

"Hey Gilda," Billie called out as Gilda was unpacking in another room, "do you want pie for breakfast?" Gilda replied in the affirmative and tried to sneak into the bathroom to put on a little rouge before coming out to greet the officer. Billie cut her a slice before sitting down with Nick, who looked a little skeptical at the idea of dessert for breakfast.

"What? There's fruit in it. That's healthy."

Nick didn’t argue, but brought her up to speed on what he knew. Did Billie know about Lucy's past? She'd already known about Dave.

“Jiraks balls, I had no fucking idea..." Billie put her head in both hands, shocked. 

"Swear jar, Billie!" Gilda said cheerfully, pointing at a mason jar on the mantel. Billie rolled her eyes and shoved a few loose bills in there. 

"There, I'll be covered for the day."

"Good morning, Officer Jakoby," said Gilda before diving into the orcish holiday pie. It was delicious... and smelled a bit familiar.

"Good morning, Gilda. Good to see you feeling well,” he said with as much of a smile as he could manage.

Just then, Sid and Ty came in the house from the back door. They exchanged a few greetings with Billie, Nick, and Gilda, and helped themselves to some pie as well. While they ate, Nick took a spin around the house and went to Lucy's room to try, yet again, to find anything that could be a clue, before heading back to the station.

Her room - gods, it smelled like her. He looked at her bulletin board. Among the post-it notes reminding her of upcoming meetings and to-do list items, he saw a receipt... for two smoothies. It was from the day of her date.

He breathed in and out and walked back into the living room, gathering himself as he prepared to head to work. As he was getting ready to leave, he noticed the strangest expression on Gilda's face.

"Gilda? Is everything okay?"

"Um yeah, it's just, this pie... it smells like the guy who knocked me down at the hospital." Nick and Billie turned their attention to her as she spoke. A strange man had slammed into Gilda on the same day that Lucy had disappeared. Nick hadn't even heard about this. He sat down, giving her his full attention. It was a long shot, but his instincts told him to pay attention.

"Do you remember anything else about the man?"

"Yeah... he was wearing scrubs but they did NOT smell like they'd ever been in that hospital. Also, he smelled like the ocean, seaweed and fish. And chemicals: diesel and creosote." Gilda was proud of herself for identifying the creosote.

Nick and Billie looked at each other, eyes wide.

"The docks..." said Billie. "That fucking awful bakery with its packaging plant on the docks. Do you think that guy was Dave West?!"

Nick pulled a photo out of his pocket and showed it to Gilda. "Did he look like this?"

"That's him!" Gilda said with wide eyes. "That's the guy who took Miss Harris?"

"We think so, but I need to be sure. Are you SURE this is him? And are you SURE about the scents you picked up?"

"I'm sure, Officer. " His features broke into a tired smile and he clapped her gently on the shoulder, reaching for his phone as he nearly broke into a run out the door.

"Gilda, honey," said Billie, “you might have just helped find Miss Harris!” She wrapped Gilda in a tight hug, then bristled as she heard her brothers pile into their van.

She'd noticed when Sid and Ty exchanged looks of their own and excused themselves from the table.

* * *

“Dave West? Isn't that the guy who ripped off Dorghu last year-" Sid began.

"Yep, same asshole."

"So where are we going now?"

"To the docks before the cops get there. I know for a fact Dorghu wants to see this motherfucker in person. We turn him over, we'll be set for life."

"What about Billie's friend, Lucy? The cops know he has her. If we grab him, won't she tell the cops it was us?"

Ty turned to his brother with a steely, heavy gaze. Sid could be so naïve sometimes. "Not if she's 'already dead' when we get there."

* * *

 "Billie, where are your brothers going?" Gilda asked. Billie looked up just in time to see the van peel out. It was early - she knew they didn't have anywhere to be in a hurry. They had to be heading down to the docks: West was probably mixed up with their gang somehow.

"Shit, I think they're going to the docks. If they make this worse, or get arrested, _shit_!" She looked at Gilda and weighed her options. She could trust the cops to handle this. They were already en route. But if her brothers got themselves, Lucy, or the officers hurt, she'd never forgive herself. To her surprise, Gilda threw her the keys to Lucy's car.

"You drive. I'm going, too."

"I can't take a thirteen year old to a crime scene! For Jirak's sake, what would your caseworker say?"

"Probably the same thing as if you left me home alone while _you_ went to a crime scene?"

"You know what? You might have a point, but I'm responsible for you right now and we really don't have time to argue about this. You're _staying here_." She ignored Gilda's sour face, grabbed her book bag and a small container of pepper spray and headed out, hopefully not too far behind Billie's brothers.

Billie's brief search for the pepper spray was all the time Gilda needed to sneak into Lucy's back seat.

* * *

"Thank god for y'all's weird orcish noses," said Ward. For once, he was driving while Nick rode shotgun.

Nick was nearly speechless, wishing he could will the car to go faster. "Just hurry, partner." Ward nodded and flipped on the siren.

* * *

Cold light hit Lucy's face again as Dave entered the shipping container/room that morning. He had a laptop in his hands.

"Hey, good news - it looks like the cavalry is on its way! That little GPS tracker on your car is paying off. Someone is driving it right towards us, and it looks like they're about... oh, five, seven minutes out? Just enough time to get a little welcome ready for them."

He set down the laptop again and punched her in the face - _hard_. Lucy tasted blood. He tied a gag around her mouth and gathered some of his knives, leaving her in darkness, helpless to keep her friends from whatever he was planning.


	10. Chapter 10

Billie was minutes away from the docks, breaking every speed limit she passed. She didn't know how she'd find Lucy or Dave when she got there, but she would trust her orc senses to guide her. Humans always underestimated orcs' noses, eyes, and ears, and she was counting on this Dave person to be no different. She just hoped she - or the officers - could find them before her brothers did.

"Apex predators, motherfucker," she said to no one as she gripped the steering wheel more tightly. "We evolved for the hunt and that's what I'm going to do." Just then, she hit a speed bump and heard an odd squeak from the backseat....

_Oh, HELL no._

**_"Gilda!_** _I swear to Jirak!"_

Gilda peeked out from under a blanket, looking guilty.

"Billie- Don’t be mad. I can help!"

" _ **No**_. No, you can't!" She saw Gilda's stricken face and softened her tone. "Look, your heart's in the right place. I get it, but... NO! We get there, you stay in the car. Out of sight."

"But-"

" ** _No buts_**." As Billie said it, she was surprised by her tone. She didn't know she even had a "mom" tone of voice. They rode the rest of the way in silence.

* * *

Lucy struggled against her arm restraints, moving her wrists back and forth, but they were made of thick leather held in place by chains. She knew she couldn't break them but she felt desperate and worried for her friends.

Just then, the door creaked and light hit her face, causing her to wince as she squinted her bruised eyelids shut. She struggled as much as she could when she heard familiar footsteps. Suddenly she recoiled as she felt a large hand wrap around her wrist.

What the fuck was Dave doing now? She heard a sound - _ **ka CHUNK**_ \- and felt one of her arms able to move freely. 

"Lucy? My gods- Are you okay?!" asked a familiar husky voice. Slowly she opened her eyes, unable to believe what she was hearing.

It was Nick. Thank Jirak, it was NICK.

She drank in the welcome sight of him and burst into tears of relief and adrenaline. He took the gag carefully off her mouth and broke the restraints on her other wrist and then her leg, using only his bare hands to break the heavy chains.

"Nick oh my god! How? I didn't think I'd ever see you again!" she sobbed, hugging him to her tightly. He returned her embrace, holding the back of her head as he pulled her close. 

He held a hand gently to her face, stroking her jawline like he couldn't believe he was seeing her, either.

"Hey Nick, y’all can have a reunion later but we’ve got to get her out of here. We still need to find the asshole who did this... if he’s still here." Ward said, shaking them both out of the moment.

“He is,” Lucy responded. “And he knew you were coming... be careful.”

Nick crouched down to one knee and looked in Lucy's eyes. “I’m going to pick you up if that’s okay.”

"Yeah,” she answered, circling her arms around his neck. Even as her rescuer, he was respectful first, as though it wouldn’t occur to him NOT to ask. He stood with her in his arms, taking a few steps outside of the shIpping container. All of a sudden she felt him freeze and tense.

 **CLICK**.

The unmistakable sound of a shotgun being cocked. Lucy flinched reflexively, then relaxed as she recognized Sid and Ty. Nick remained tense.

“Where’s Dave West?” asked Ty, pointing the weapon at Nick.

"Put the gun down," said Nick in a measured tone, quiet but threatening.

" _Where_ is he?" Ty repeated, louder.

"Look, you hate this guy, we hate this guy," Sid started. "Just tell us where he is, and you guys can go."

"You must think we're goddamn idiots," said Ward, training his gun on Ty. "Lower your weapons."

Ty just scoffed, then shifted his gun so it was pointed directly at Lucy's head.

"Lower yours, officer, and tell us where Dave West is or she dies," said Ty.

Daryl took a step forward, placing himself between Nick, holding Lucy, and Ty. Ty pointed his weapon back at Daryl. "Not another step, Officer."

"Ty I don't know about this. We can't shoot cops..."

"Shut UP, Sid!"

**_BANG_ **

The argument was cut short by a gunshot fired up into the thin metal roof of the warehouse building they were standing in.

The five of them turned around to see Dave holding a gun to Billie's head - no mean feat, as she towered over him. As he pressed the gun barrel to her jaw she looked more pissed off than afraid.

"Drop your guns - _ALL OF YOU!_ " Dave shouted. "I’m either leaving with both of these ladies alive, or we all start shooting each other. Honestly I'm fine with either option."

Nick glowered at him for several seconds before moving. Gently, he set Lucy down on her good foot, leaning her against the shipping container behind them. He turned around and unholstered his weapon, slowly placing it on the ground in front of him while his other hand stayed open and raised.

Daryl did the same with his firearm, then Sid and Ty followed suit. Sid kept glancing at his baby sister, terrified. Ty looked like he wanted to rip this guy’s throat out.

"Your walkie talkies - toss them." Daryl threw his on the ground but Nick chucked his with some force, so that it landed several yards away behind a pile of tires.

"The hell was that?" asked Daryl, but Nick didn't respond or even take his eyes off Dave.

"Okay, guns are down," Nick started, gently. He took a breath and hardened his tone. He spoke slowly and clearly, his anger simmering but contained.  "Now: let her go and maybe you'll get out of here alive."

Dave let out a loud, cruel barking laugh. "I don't think you're in much of a position to bargain here, pignose. How about you get out of the way and I take Lucy and this orc bitch with me?”

Nick spoke again, using the same measured, barely restrained tone of voice.

”Let her go. Drop your weapon. The only way you get out of here alive is in the back of our squad car.” Lucy was in awe of his self control in this moment. “If you want Lucy you’ll have to go through me.”

“That’s fine with me,” West said, pointing his weapon straight at Nick... and firing.

As he fired, Billie stomped on his foot, sending the bullet wild and up into the air, where it punched another a hole in the thin metal building. While he was distracted she drove her elbow into his gut, doubling him over and freeing herself from his grip. She ran to Lucy. Nick took two small steps, attempting to shield both of them with his body.

“ _Fucking pigskin bitch_!” He yelled, training his weapon on Billie as much as he could from behind Nick. This action was met by multiple clicks as Ward, Sid, and Daryl had taken advantage of the momentary chaos to retrieve their guns.

The stalemate lingered for several minutes. Dave alternated his aim between Nick and Billie. Sid, Ty, and Daryl took steady aim at Dave.

"You know, I think Dorghu would offer some kind of reward even if the guy's dead," Sid suggested, growing tired of holding his aim.

"Nah," Ty responded. "This guy stole a shitload from him. He's gonna want to handle this himself."

"Let's knock off the 'who's killing who first' bullshit. How about the same number of alive people leave this place as came in, how does that sound?" asked Daryl. No response. "Hey you two orc dudes haven’t done anything yet, help us get bring in this asshole peacefully, and maybe we won’t arrest you for drawing weapons on officers.”

Lucy held her breath. She felt like any stray movement could set an awful chain of events in motion. Just then, she heard a sound: a static _HISS_ from behind the pile of tires where Nick had thrown his walkie. In a flash of realization, Billie hung her head and swore.

"Who the fuck _else_ is here?" asked Dave. "Get your ass out here NOW!"

There was a rustling of movement from behind the pile of tires. Trembling, Gilda emerged and inched forward towards the group. Her eyes were wide and she held her hands behind her back.

"Hands UP!" he barked. She looked back and forth from Dave to Billie and then to Nick. Slowly, she raised her hands. Something tumbled out and hit the ground with a clatter: Nick's walkie. They could barely make out a few words:

"...all units report... ETA on that distress call... warehouse district..." Lucy looked at Nick and he gave her a wink. He had known all along where Gilda was hiding - probably all of the orcs did. He had tossed her the walkie on purpose and she had used it to call for help. Lucy started to wonder how far out the backup was when the sound of sirens screamed out in the distance.

" _You fucking little bitch!_ " Dave yelled as he walked towards Gilda, now aiming only at her. The police would be here any minute, and Dave was desperate, which made him completely unpredictable. Nick ran towards him and tackled him before he could reach her, sending Dave's weapon spinning out of reach on the floor. He flipped Dave roughly on his stomach on the ground and pinned him with one knee, preparing his handcuffs. 

"Dave West, you piece of human garbage, you have the right to remain silent..." Nick said calmly, cuffing his prisoner. Billie ran to Gilda and hugged her close. She'd save the lecture for later.

 _ **"NO!**_ " Lucy screamed. She had recovered Dave's weapon and, despite her limp and her cast, she quickly closed the distance, holding the weapon pressed against Dave's head. "No! He doesn't get to come out of this alive!" Her voice and her hand were shaking. "Not after everything - after everything he put me through. _NO!_ " To her surprise, Dave just smirked at her, showing no fear.

Nick laid a hand lightly on Lucy's arm. "Lucy. You can't let him do this to you."

"No Nick, for once, _I'm_ doing something to _him_."

"If you kill him now, you'll have to live with that for the rest of your life, and he'll never answer for anything. He'll live in your head forever. _He'll win_."

Lucy looked at Nick. She felt empty, shattered. Dave had taken so much from her over the years: her sense of safety, her ability to even trust herself. The thought of living with any kind of connection to him - it sickened her.

"He gets away with everything. Look at my face - look at what he tried to do just now. He can't get away with _this!_ "

The police sirens had gotten louder and louder: They must be within a block. Nick tilted his head forward slightly as he looked in her eyes. He gave her a tired smile and gently squeezed her arm.

 _"_ I promise, Lucy. _ **He won't.** "_

Lucy looked back at Nick, unable to express her tangle of emotions. Nick's unwavering belief in goodness, despite everything, cut her to her core. Even in this swirling chaos, he was a rock. He never lashed out and never backed down.

Nick showed an inner strength through his gentle steadiness that a thousand “macho” assholes with guns and fists could never touch.

Suddenly ashamed, she knew he was right. Lucy let the gun drop and fell into Nick's arms. Exhausted. Relieved.

At the same time, a half-dozen police cars surrounded the warehouse building and officers filed in. Ward began to fill them in as they hauled West into a car and brought the rest in to give statements.

* * *

The group separated as they made their way to the station. Ward had graciously offered to ride in another car to give Lucy and Nick a little time together. As Lucy climbed into the car, she saw a file folder with her name - her old name - on the cover. She opened it and saw all of her old records.

"Oh. So... you know about that."

“We brought it in case something in there could help find you. We don't have to talk about it now."

"It's okay, Nick. Look, I grew up... kinda rough. I don't want to make excuses, but I ran with tough kids and we got into some shit. When the FBI agent approached me about Dave and told me she could relocate me, I thought it was a sign. All that stuff that "Jennie" did - that's about things that happened to me. "Lucy" is what I chose to take out of that. "Lucy" is my second chance." She breathed in deeply.

"Nick- I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I just... I really wanted to think of that old life as gone, as dead. And I didn’t want you to think of me that way, as a criminal. Honestly I never wanted anyone to know about "Jennie" ever again.”

"Before I met you, my faith in other people was almost completely... _shaken._ ”

He continued to drive but risked a sideways glance at her. He furrowed his brow, concentrating.

"Did you know how much I wanted to kill Dave just now?” She asked. “I did.”

”I do know,” he said gently. He didn’t blame her one bit for that.

”But you stopped me. You were right. I would have to live every day with that. Even in an extreme situation like that, you just know what the right thing is, and that’s what you do. I just want you to know... you’re a rare guy.”

She paused again. She looked over at him as he drove and saw his ears flutter rapidly. 

“Look Lucy, I have to tell you something. When I saw you in there, bruised and hurt, in shackles...” He shook his head slowly at the memory. “The only thing I could think of was killing Dave with my bare hands, ripping his arms off, and spilling his blood.”

As he said this, Nick turned his head to check his blind spot before changing lanes. He waved amiably and grinned as another driver let him in.

Lucy just blinked. She wasn’t sure what what more shocking: what he’d said or his matter-of-fact tone of voice. He wasn’t exaggerating. He literally meant what he said.

”Well... you didn’t.”

”I thought about it again when I pinned and cuffed him. I’d probably pick the right arm first, because of how he was lying. I’d twist it just so and then-”

”Jirak H. Orc! Fuck, Nick! Why are you telling me this?”

”I don’t want you to think I’m some kind of saint. My badge was the only thing holding me back in there. Orcs have instincts that humans don’t understand. I know humans feel anger and protectiveness, but it’s different. When some asshole hurts someone we love, it’s like a switch is flipped. It overrides reason entirely.”  Anger crept into his voice as he spoke, remembering how he’d found Lucy.

She blinked back a few tears, moved.

”Look, What I said still stands,” she said. “You  _did_ resist that impulse. You- Wait. _What_ did you just say?” Had he just said... that he loved her?

 _Shit_ , he thought. He hadn’t meant to blurt that out. It was too much, too soon, especially right after all that talk of dismemberment. She was going to bolt. He looked a little panicked and struggled for the right words.

”Nick... it’s okay. I love you too.”

She reached out for his hand, interlacing their fingers. He brought her hand up to his mouth and gave it a kiss. They rode the rest of the way to the station in silence, content for a moment.


	11. Chapter 11

Leaving the docks, Lucy reached out for Nick's hand, interlacing their fingers. He brought her hand up to give it a kiss. They rode the rest of the way to the police station in silence, content for a moment.

* * *

After the station, Nick had insisted she get checked out at the hospital, which took a longer while than they expected. It was after 10pm when they left, and they decided she should stay at Nick's that night, as not to wake anyone up at Billie's. Lucy sent her roommate a text so she wouldn't worry.

When they got to his house, Nick drew her a hot bath full of fragrant lavender and chamomile and went to the living room to put on a movie while she took her time. When she got out - no mean feat with the lower leg cast and crutches - she saw one of his favorite tee shirts laid out next to a pair of pajama pants, just outside the bathroom door. They were far too big, but a drawstring helped, and his worn-in clothes were so comfortable.

She joined Nick on the couch but then fell asleep almost immediately, underestimating her own fatigue.

Nick smiled as she started softly snoring as her head sunk into his chest. He couldn’t imagine what she’d been through the last couple of days, and if she was able to feel comfortable anywhere, it was a miracle.

Right now, all he wanted was to be her safe place to land.

He lightly kissed the top of her head and let her fall more deeply asleep before he picked her up, tucked her into his bed and returned to the couch for the night.

* * *

Lucy slept better that night than any she could remember.

In the morning her eyelids slammed open as a loud mechanical _**WHIRRR**_ rang out from another room. In a panic, she sat bolt upright.

_Where the fuck am I?_  

For a moment, nothing looked familiar. Her heart started to pound. Even her clothes felt unfamiliar...

Then she looked down at her shirt. It had an image of a smiling Jirak surrounded by an assortment of fresh vegetables and a tagline reading "L.A. Orc Gardeners' Club."

_Oh, sweet Nick_ , she thought, remembering. She took a deep breath and sank back into Nick's bed.  _Dave was arrested_ , she reminded herself.  _I might never have to feel that old dread, ever again._ She looked beside her- the other side of the bed was undisturbed. Nick must have slept somewhere else. 

She heard the **_WHIRRR_** sound again, a clattering of something falling, and then a shout: " _JIRAK DAMMIT_!"

A few moments later, Nick burst in the bedroom grinning broadly, wearing a striped apron and holding two green smoothies. _Fucking adorable, this guy_. On closer look, she saw that his face and apron were splashed with green dots of smoothie... _Oh, Nick._

She sat up and stretched, hair tumbling in all directions as she gave a sleepy smile. "Hey, good lookin'."

"Morning, Lucy!” He greeted her sunnily, “ I could tell you were starting to wake up so I wanted to get this ready. One of the guys at the smoothie café gave me the recipe for these so I can make them any time I want.”

He looked so proud as he handed her one, taking a seat on the bed next to her and waiting for her to taste it.

"Thanks, sweetie... should I ask why you're wearing it?"

"I um, broke the top of the blender... I guess they don't make those things too sturdy." She reached up and wiped a little smoothie off his cheek with one finger and brought it to her mouth to taste, giving him a look as she did so that made his ears twitch rapidly.

"How are you feeling?” he asked.

"Well, let's see,” she started, taking a sip of her smoothie, “I slept better than I have in months and I just woke up to a handsome, strapping orc feeding me delicious homemade smoothies in bed. It doesn't suck."

"Your leg?"

"Same," she shrugged, wiggling her toes as they poked out of the cast, then regretting that immediately as hot flames of pain shot down her broken shin.

"Is there anything else you need right now?”

”Right now?" She looked at him and raised her eyebrows slightly, reaching out to lightly brush his leg with her fingertips. "Only one thing comes to mind.”

”Lucy... are you sure?" he asked, covering her small hand with his larger one.

”if it’s not a good time, that’s fine. I just want you to know... I’m ready. To be with you.”

His brows furrowed very slightly as he looked straight in her eyes, scanning her face. There was no hesitation there, nothing she was holding back. Just affection, contentment, and... desire. And gods, did he return the feeling.

He leaned forward to kiss her but she held out a finger. 

"Not that it wouldn't be fun to lick you clean, but would you mind..." she asked, indicating his smoothie-dappled face and apron.

"I'll be right back," he told her with a sly smile. "Although I wouldn't mind trying it the other way..." She tossed a towel at him as he headed for the master bathroom.

* * *

Nick returned to the bedroom a quick minute later, wearing only his pajama pants - the shirt was a lost cause, banished to the laundry - where he found Lucy lying naked in his bed. 

"Want to join me?" she asked.

His mouth fell open before he thought to collect himself. Lucy found that completely adorable and bit her lip as he approached her where she lay.

He swallowed as he took in the sight of her, trying to memorize every beautiful square inch. He'd never been with a human woman before, and wanted this to be perfect, but he could feel his Orcish instincts starting to take hold as his arousal grew, and he hoped she wouldn't be turned off by any growls or nibbles. He ached to touch her.

There was still a part of him, though, that couldn't quite believe she would want him. Living around humans his whole life meant receiving a steady stream of messages that he was ugly, repulsive, just an animal: he'd internalized these messages to some degree. For a human to look at him like Lucy did: not only with love but with trust, respect... and lust -- it was a new experience.

"Lucy, you're..." His words failed him. "You're just so beautiful."

She gave him a warm smile. "Get over here, handsome," she told him, bending one knee slightly - the leg that wasn't in the cast - and the delicate musk of her arousal overtook him. He almost leapt into the bed, running his broad hands over her back and pressing his rough lips to her soft mouth. He loved feeling her impossibly silky human skin against his and marveled, once again, at how readily she yielded to him. Carefully he brought a hand up to cup the gentle swell of her breast, enjoying her soft hum as he lightly grazed her nipple with his thumb. Encouraged by this, he lowered his head to take her nipple in his mouth and gently suck at the taut, sensitive bud.

She moaned with want and pleasure at this and ran her hands up his back and neck, enjoying the feel of his well-defined muscles as he moved above her. He pulled back for a moment and looked into her eyes. Her face was flushed and her wavy hair spilled in all directions. The way she looked up at him floored him.

"Lucy, you're amazing. I meant what I said - well, blurted out - yesterday. I really do love you. I wanted to tell you that before..."

"Nick," she said, touched by his sincerity. "I love you, too. But..." A sly smile spread across her lips as she continued. "Please just kiss me now."

He returned her mischievous expression and let out a playful growl as she pulled him back into their kiss, breathing him in deeply as she held him to her. She wrapped her legs around him as they continued to kiss. The feeling of her sex pressed against his drove him crazy, and he felt his cock begin to throb and harden.

"Oh, Nick- I can feel you getting hard through your pants. My god, _please.._." she purred.

He reached down, down to feel her sex and let out a low rumble as he felt how wet she was for him. He began to gently stroke her clit, drawing a loud moan. After a moment, he slipped one... then two of his thick fingers inside her, feeling her arch her back beneath him as he pushed them inside her, finding a rhythm that seemed to drive her crazy.

"You like the way I feel, baby?" She asked breathlessly. "My gods, Nick, I want you inside me..." She felt him stiffen as she spoke. He made another rumbling growl. This one was less playful and more passionate, and its low vibration rang through her entire body.

He gave her a soft kiss before moving so that he could remove his pants. Lucy watched him carefully as he did and... was not expecting this. She'd heard rumors that orcs were bigger than humans, but she had no idea. Before she could stop herself she expressed some surprise, " _Damn,_ Nick!"

He paused. "Is everything okay? Is it your leg? Am I-"

"Shhh, no, everything's good." She didn't know if she'd be able to take him or not, but she wanted to try. She brought her hands up to his face and started to stroke his ear, an action that brought him right back to the moment. His eyes rolled back and he let out a hiss of air as she continued to rub the sensitive spot. He returned to lie between her legs as his mouth found hers again, both now kissing hungrily.

Unable to resist any longer, he took himself in his hand and rubbed the head of his cock up and down against her a few times, rubbing against her clit and between her folds. He lined himself up with her entrance and paused, placing his hands on her hips and looking straight in her eyes as he pushed into her in one long, firm stroke.

She gasped as she felt him fill her entirely.

He waited just a moment before he began to move, rocking his hips gently at first. When she started to move beneath him, he could tell she was ready for more and began to increase his pace. Fucking her felt so good, so intense. He wanted to take his time with her, but he wasn't sure if he could hold back.

"Nick! You feel so good inside me," she managed to whisper in a trembling voice. Her words made his eyes roll back as he continued to move. She matched his rhythm as she moved against him, wrapping her legs around him to take him in even deeper. My god it wouldn't take him long at all, but he wanted to wait for her.

He reached down to stroke her clit again, drawing even louder moans from Lucy.

"Lucy... you feel incredible, oh my gods..."

"It feels... so good, Nick. My gods you fuck me so... _good_..." her breathing started to grow uneven and could tell she was getting closer to her climax. He let his restraint go a bit, driving into her pussy harder now, over and over as her moans grew louder and more intense. She called out his name, and dug her nails into his skin as her pleasure built.

Finally, she clasped her arms around him and cried out loudly, her orgasm crashing over her in waves. Her hips bucked wildly as she lost control in the moment, her cunt clenching tightly around his hard cock. The intensity of her release caused Nick to let go as well, pumping his seed into her and crying out her name as he did.

It took a few moments for them to catch their breath. They remained locked together for several seconds as their breath slowed and their pulse returned to normal. Nick gently bent his head down, pressing his forehead against hers for a several seconds. It was a solemn, intimate gesture that she found deeply moving. He gave her a soft kiss before gently easing himself out of her.

"Do you need anything?" he asked.

"Some water, please?" She enjoyed watching him walk around unabashedly naked as he went to the kitchen and returned with two cups. After they drank he returned to lie in the bed and she draped her arm and torso across his chest. She traced the intricate patterns of his skin markings with her fingertips and he watched her, smiling.

* * *

_Lucy stumbled along a dark alleyway, stumbling over the occasional box or piece of trash as she made her way._

_Footsteps behind her - getting closer. She tried to pick up her pace without making much noise. She ducked into a narrow doorway and found a long hallway, lined with doors. She opened the first one to find... another hallway._ _Into the series of halls she went, shutting each door behind her, as quickly and as quietly as she could. She went deeper into the maze of hallways and doors. Surely he couldn’t still be following..._

_Yet every time she was still for a few seconds, there it was again: the sound of footsteps getting closer._

_Suddenly, she realized that she had a choice. She didn’t have to run forever. Standing straight and rolling back her shoulders, she opened the door she’d just closed._

_Facing her was Dave West. Was this who she was so afraid of for so long? He looked so small now._ _Gathering her courage, she yelled as loud as she possibly could:_

_”NO! This is over! No!” And slammed the door in his face. Shaking, she listened hard for any sign of him on the other side, but he didn’t even try the doorknob._

_From deeper in the room where she stood, she heard another sound:_

_”I’ve got you, I’ve got you. You’re safe.”_

Lucy’s eyes snapped awake... it was a recurring nightmare. But it never ended that way before, with her confronting West. There was never a third person there, either.

"It's okay now, Lucy. You're safe here." She realized it must have been obvious she was having a nightmare, and Nick had held her close, protectively. It was Nick's voice that she'd heard at the end of her dream. He was looking at her with a worried expression, brushing a hair away from her face so that he could see her better. She smiled up at him and took a deep breath, holding him close to her as she responded, simply:

"I know."

* * *

Several months later, Ward was in Nick's house, helping him tie a Windsor knot. Nick was hopeless at it: he'd tried it no less than a dozen times before he had to call his partner.

"Well, partner, how do I look?" he asked. He was wearing a dark suit, freshly pressed, and a crisp white shirt. His necktie was a bright azure blue. Ward took a step back and cocked his head to the side, considering.

"Well you're ugly as ever, but the bowtie looks good. Are you sure you're ready for this?"

Nick grinned broadly as he said, "Absolutely." It was an unusual decision, but he was more certain about this than almost anything.

"Then let's go," Ward said, grabbing his keys.

 

 

 


	12. Chapter 12

Lucy stared straight ahead at the heavy wooden door, her heart in her throat. She felt terrified and locked in this moment: unable to go forward and unable to leave. She thought of Nick - her sweet Nick. What would he tell her if he was out here with her in the hall?

Around her, dozens of people rushed in suits and skirts. Fridays must be a busy day at the courthouse. 

She thought of Nick again, how he’d once told her she was very brave. She couldn’t back out now.

She hated that he couldn't be here, but it was unavoidable, and she knew he felt awful about it. But he was occupied with something equally important. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. This would be it, the end of this whole mess. She resolved to go forward, push open that heavy courtroom door and do what she'd come here to do.

It was sentencing day for Dave West's trial - eight months after he’d held her captive - and she'd come here to read a victim's impact statement. She stared down at the worn paper in her hands. She'd read over it so many times that she hoped she'd be able to get through it without tears. The prosecution lawyer said that tears could help at this point, but she had vowed not to let them fall today. Dave didn't deserve to see them.

As she took a step toward the door, a hand on her shoulder stopped her. It was Billie, breathless, as if she'd run the whole way here.

"I was worried I wouldn't get here in time!" she said, panting.

"I can't believe you made it!"

"No, we're good. We didn't want to miss it." A few paces behind her, Gilda waved shyly. Nick stood behind her with his hand on Gilda's shoulder, then rushed to Lucy, wrapping her up into a tight hug.

"Nick! I'm so glad you're here. I thought you'd all still be at the church!"

"I hated to think of you facing that asshole on your own. I wanted to be here. Plus, Billie made a pretty persuasive case for us to get away for a bit."

"She cussed in church," said Gilda

Lucy laughed heartily at this, then furrowed her brow as she looked back at Billie. 

"You know she can't be in there during-"

"I know, I know. She'll be right outside the room during your testimony." Billie looked Lucy squarely in her eyes and placed both hands on her shoulders. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be!" The three of them walked into the courtroom.

* * *

At the same time, Nick and Ward were driving toward a place Nick hoped he'd never see the inside of again: the Orc Cathedral downtown. As they parked, Nick wondered how many times any police officers had ever set foot in this place, outside of official business.

"This place still gives me the creeps," Nick said, puffing out his chest to assume a confident posture as they walked toward the door.

"Yeah, you and me both," Ward replied. "Hey, you're sure I need to be here for this? I mean the last time we were here they weren't exactly thrilled with us."

Nick just gave his partner a _look_.

"Okay fine, but if they say anything-"

 _"Seriously_?!" Nick interrupted. "If you'll _recall_ , the last time we were here they actually _**killed me**_ , so you'll excuse me if I'm not too sympathetic about your nerves, here."

"Well... okay. Fair enough." Daryl almost never shut up that quickly.

The two walked to the church's front door in silence, until Daryl spoke up again. "Hey Nick? Don't know if I said this or not, but I think it's a cool thing you're doing."

* * *

About a month earlier, Gilda and Billie had been doing a little house re-arranging. Lucy had just moved into Nick's house, and now the two orcs had the place all to themselves, so they were trying out some different decorating ideas.

"Billie, do you think you'll ever get married or move in together with anyone?"

Billie stood up straight and looked at her, surprised. "Honestly... I don’t know. Why?" Gilda just shrugged and held up two different paintings, imagining each of them against the short living room wall.

"Well, I know you don't always introduce me to the ladies that you go out with. And that's okay, but I just want you to know, if you ever like someone a lot, it's okay."

 _Where was this coming from?_ Billie wondered. "And what if I don't ever find someone I wanted to be with long-term? Would that bother you?"

Gilda put down the paintings and looked at Billie, considering. She hoped she hadn't hurt Billie's feelings.

"Billie, I love being here. The last - what, eight months? - I mean, it hasn't always been easy, but it's really nice to feel like part of a family again... and even when it's just you and me it's like a family. I just don't want you to miss out on anything because you're taking care of me."

Billie was gutted - this girl. "Hey. Kid. I appreciate that, but listen: it’s not your job to worry about me. It's my job to worry about you now.” Gilda looked unconvinced. “I won't rule it out, the possibility of settling down with someone. But I'm not focused on it, okay?"

"Okay." Gilda agreed with a degree of seriousness. "I just think we need to talk about all of these things before... you know. The adoption." Gilda looked at Billie with a serious expression. Such a thoughtful girl, all the time.

"Gilda, I want you to feel like you can talk to me about any gods-damned thing under the blue sky. But hear this and believe it: _You're not keeping me from a gods-damned thing I want to do_. You’re who I want to spend my time with, and I feel like I hit the damn lottery because I get to be your... guardian. You got that, kid?"

Gilda nodded.

"I got it..." she took a deep breath before continuing... "Mom."

Billie froze. Gilda, watching her, also froze. Tears welled in Billie's eyes as she reached into her pocket and threw a wad of bills at the "swear jar" under the TV.

"Holy fucking shit, Gilda, I love you so godsdamned much!" She yelled, pulling the girl into a tight hug.

"Oh my gods, Billie- Mom- whatever- you're _squishing me_!"

Billie didn't relax her hug even a little bit.

* * *

 

Back in the present, Lucy entered the cathedral alone and unsure what to expect. Nick, Billie, and Gilda had to hurry back right after her testimony, arriving hours before the ceremony.

She saw Sid and Ty sitting towards the back, but she hadn't felt comfortable around them since Ty had aimed a gun at her the day Dave was arrested. Sid waved at her - he was a good guy, in his way - but Lucy pretended not to notice so that she wouldn't have to sit with them and make small talk with Ty. Eight months later, the memory was still raw and seeing Ty still made the whole day rush back. Although, she had to admit, today's sentencing did help considerably. The judge had given him 50 years, with no chance for parole.

She scanned the sanctuary for an open seat. Nick had told her that ceremonies of this kind were a _huge_ deal, but she hadn’t expected the place to be this packed.

She looked for a familiar face but knew tha Nick, Billie, and Gilda would all be occupied. Finally, she saw a waving hand and a face she recognized: Daryl Ward, Nick's partner. He was there with his wife and his daughter Sophia, who Gilda had started babysitting on occasion. Sophia thought Gilda was the absolute  _coolest_. Nick had told her that Ward didn’t want to bring his daughter, but she’d insisted. 

Lucy made her way over to the Wards, drawing a few strange looks from the other orcs in attendance as she did. Possibly it was because she was one of four total humans in attendance... Possibly it was because Nick’s scent hung on her. Now that they lived together, it was likely.

Billie had legally adopted Gilda a week ago, but for the orcs, today was an even more special day: the day she was welcomed as a full member of the Clan. Billie was going to be legally and symbolically recognized by the church as Gilda's parent. Gilda had asked Nick to act as something that he translated as a "non-religious godparent." He'd been so touched by Gilda's request: it reminded Lucy of the first day they'd met. Lucy smiled at the memory and looked up at the altar where her sweet orc stood proudly, head held high, respected at last by other members of his race. She was so pleased for him to have this moment.

"Hey, Lucy," said Daryl. "Our boy cleans up nice, doesn't he?" 

Lucy nodded, unable to stop herself from grinning broadly. "Good to see you, Daryl. Are you guys coming over later?" Lucy and Nick were hosting a post-ceremony cookout for some of Gilda's friends.

"Yes! We are! Gilda invited me _personally_!" Sophia piped up.

"She did? Well I know she'll love to see you! So are you-?" Lucy started to ask a question

 " _SHHH_! It's about to start!" Sophia interrupted. Daryl just looked at Lucy and shook his head with a slight eye roll and reluctant smile. He wasn't always talkative with her, but today he seemed in a good mood. Just before the ceremony, he leaned over to her and whispered.

"Hey I just wanted to say - I mean, I don't really know how you put up with him, but... Nick seems happy ever since y'all got together. I don’t get it, but... well I don’t really have to. So I just wanted to say that."

Before Lucy could respond, the lights dimmed and a figure wearing an animal skull mask began an intricate Bodzhvokhan chant. The attendees fell silent as all eyes were drawn to the altar.

* * *

Gilda had invited her whole class to the post-ceremony cookout at Nick and Lucy’s house, along with the Wards. She ran around with her friends for most of the party, laughing and joking about who had crushes and what next year's teacher was going to be like. She was glad that Miss Harris and Officer Jakoby were dating, even if she kind of wished they wouldn't kiss in front of her classmates, or disappearing into the house for minutes at a time.

Anyway, she knew that Nick (he'd told her to call him Nick) was super old and besides, she kind of had her eye on an ogre named Jeremy these days. He sat right behind her and passed her lovely poems in class.

Even though she called Billie Mom now, her parents would _always_ be her parents, even though they were gone. She had promised herself to keep their memory alive. And Billie got that: She had told Gilda that she would never try to replace them, and that they would make a new kind of family, just the two of them.

From across the yard, Billie and Gilda made eye contact while Billie chatted up one of the single moms. Billie nodded at Gilda and raised a red Solo cup in a long distance “cheers.” Gilda took a seat in a nearby folding chair, happy to be in the middle of all this wonderful craziness.

Sophia ran up as she sat, wrapping her in a hug: she had brought Gilda a gift she'd picked out herself: a locket with a tiny picture of Billie and Gilda together. “Gilda! You looked so awesome up there! Hey listen to this: [Congratulations on joining your clan!]”

”Sophia, wow! That was amazing Bodzvokhan!” She was truly touched- that was _not_ an easy language. 

”Nick taught me. Do you want to go get a veggie burger?”

”Sure- Lead the way!”

* * *

 Lucy looked at Nick, humming while he happily flipped veggie burgers on the grill. 

It was such a suburban archetype: Lucy chatting up guests while her orc boyfriend tended to plant-based burgers on the grill... Well, maybe it wasn't entirely traditional, but it was just how Lucy liked it. Never in a million years would Lucy have imagined a life that felt this safe and happy.

“Looking good,” She said, pulling a swig from her beer and draping an arm loosely around her lover’s waist. 

“You think so? I think they need a little more time... Course it’s hard to tell when soy and pea protein is 'done.'”

”I don’t know. I wasn’t looking at the burgers.”

He stopped what he was doing and turned to face her, smiling. She raised her eyebrows at him suggestively. He knew exactly what this look on her face meant...

”Lucy, we _can’t_ ,” he said, dropping his voice to a low growl as he pulled her close. “we’ve already gone inside twice, people are going to notice.”

"Ah, fine..." She knew he was right, though it pained her to admit it. "You just looked so good out there I couldn't resist. Can't blame a girl for trying, right?"

"I guess not," he said shyly. "Hey Lucy? How are you doing? It was a big day today."

"Yeah... honestly? I'm doing amazing. I'm so glad you were able to make it to the courthouse. And I loved watching you up there, at the orc church. You looked so happy."

"I was. But not happier than I am right now." He leaned over and kissed her lightly, enjoying the little sigh she gave as he pulled away and brought his attention back to the veggie burgers.

* * *

 

After a bit, most of Gilda's classmates and their families had left, but Billie, Gilda, Nick, Lucy, and the Ward family were all enjoying each other's company and didn't seem to show any sign of calling it a day.

The priest at the Orc Church today had told Gilda that, as of today's ceremony, she was now part of a proud family: the family of orc-kind. But Gilda had thought a lot about what "family" means, and when she looked around this party, she thought he didn't know what he was talking about. She saw Billie telling one of her crazy stories to Daryl and Sherri, Sophia drawing a picture that looked like the orc adoption ceremony, and Nick and Lucy flirting at the grill. Everyone seemed relaxed and comfortable.

She knew in her heart that "family" was what this crazy group of people already was, even if they didn't look "traditional" share names, blood, or even the same race. 

They were already family to each other, bound together by love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The End!
> 
> Some notes: Saint Emydius (the school) is a Catholic saint invoked for protection against earthquakes.
> 
> The dessert in Chapters 6 and (I think) 9 is an amalgamation of different Ukrainian desserts, because orcs were supposed to come from the Pripyat (Pripet) marshes in modern day Ukraine/Belarus.
> 
> Billie is 6’4” and honestly I want to be her when I grow up.
> 
> Why not: Gilda grows up to become a civil rights lawyer, fighting anti-discrimination cases. Lucy and Nick live happily ever after.


End file.
